Revan's Shadow
by Trahern
Summary: The crew of the Ebon Hawk search for the clues that will lead them to the Star Forge and a way to end the threat of the Sith. I started writing this years ago on the KotOR fanmedia website. We'll see how it fares, here and now. Female Revan & Bastila femslash. Cover art by... Snug? It's been a few years...
1. Prologue: Present Day

**Revan's Shadow: Prologue - Present Day**

The final shudder of the Ebon Hawk sent a shock through her body. The hum of the engines wound down and died, and for a moment all was still. Then Mission's voice burst out in a celebratory whoop, and time crawled onward once again.

Too late. That short moment was all she had needed to realise the full weight of her actions.

Revan found her there, squeezed into the corner of her bunk, arms about her knees, eyes moist and body quivering in shock. She looked silently upon her for a moment, then simply held out her hand.

Bastila looked at it for a moment, then slowly uncurled and allowed the redeemed Jedi to pull her to her feet.

Together they took the corridor around the main hold. Bastila could hear the others celebrating there. Carth's laugh, such a rare sound. Mission bouncing around, taking turns hugging everyone except Canderous - she could imagine the look of alarm on his face at the concept - and Zaalbar's happy howling. She couldn't hear Juhani of course, but Jolee was grumbling some wisecrack to her about something, and the droids were commenting on the celebratory habits of meatbags.

They were so happy without her. It was probably for the best. Her presence would only ruin the mood, dampen the emotion... she wondered which side of her was thinking it was a bad thing.

Revan led her out of the ship. Together they walked along the beach, away from the landing site and the temple up the mountain, away from everything and everyone else. They walked in silence, along one cove after another, until Revan decided they had gone far enough. She drew Bastila up to the treeline and sat in the sand. The sun was low over the ocean, illuminating the tears that had been running silently down Bastila's cheeks.

Now that they were still, she buried her face in Revan's shoulder and began to sob openly. Revan held her close, allowing Bastila's arms to encircle her ribcage and squeeze bruisingly tight. Revan didn't use the bond between them to strengthen Bastila's control over her emotions as they washed over her, over them both. Revan let the tears fall from her own eyes as she felt Bastila's guilt and shame, for there was also a growing glimmer of relief.

In time the sobbing lessened, then ended altogether. They watched the sun sink down behind the water, still clinging to each other.

"I've made a mess of your new robes." Bastila finally whispered.

"It's okay." Revan replied. "I don't like them anyway. I guess I'll always prefer black." she added with a tug at Bastila's Sith robes. A moment of silence followed, and then: "I've decided the Jedi council had the right idea, but went about it the wrong way. You were wrong, too."

"How so?"

"I'm not Revan. Revan never got a second chance. I got a first chance. Whoever I am," she sighed. "The Jedi code says 'There is no emotion, there is peace,' but the council violated my mind out of fear. Whether my memory loss was the result of the wounds I suffered in Malak's betrayal, or the council deliberately mindwiped me; they were afraid that reconstructing Revan's memory and personality would bring back a Sith lord instead of a Jedi knight. Revan cannot be punished for her crimes, and her atonement isn't hers, because it's mine." She shifted position to hold Bastila even tighter. "If you were given the choice to forget everything you are, everything you've done... would you choose not to be Bastila and be someone... invented?"

It was a long moment before Bastila gave her answer. "No, I would not." She thought about it some more. "Revan should have had the choice? Surely the council knew she would have resisted..."

"That's the heart of their crime. They knew. So they made me instead. They should have put Revan back together as best they could and let the Force take it from there. Instead, here I sit, unable to truly remember the full horror of everything I did; wishing I could, so I could feel what you feel... so we could get through this, together."

Revan could feel Bastila was glad she couldn't remember enough to do anything more than regret. She could feel the gratitude, the compassion - the love - reflecting between them as surely as the fading light of the sun. Revan tore her gaze from it to look into Bastila's eyes and saw hope burning there for the first time since her fall.

Bastila let Revan lick at the tracks her tears had made across her cheeks. When she kissed her, Bastila responded in kind. Together they lay back in the sand. Legs clothed in black entertwined with legs wrapped in beige as their tongues met. Hands slid across cloth and skin, into hair, under robes to the flesh within.

Bastila broke the kiss with a gasp. "But... passion..."

Revan paused. "On the temple, when you gave me that impassioned speech, trying to turn me over to the dark side... was it your love for me that was coursing through your heart, or lust for power?" She watched Bastila's face as she realised it was the latter, then continued. "Let's write our own code. There is no passion, without love..."

"...Love can save you from the dark side." Bastila finished with a smile.

The kissing resumed.

* * *

_I know now that my earliest true memory is of Revan and Malak finding the star map on Dantooine. It does not truly conflict with the life I remember, because Revan's memories are far more distinct than the vague impressions I recall of the life that never truly was._

_There was a reason for it at the time of course. The life of an anti-social scout must be easier to construct than the social interactions of a charismatic Jedi. I suppose the council believed Revan's amiability is why so many Jedi left with her to fight in the Mandalorian war, and why they followed her on the path of the dark side to the last man...save one. I wonder what happened to him._

_My remembered childhood is of being raised by a community instead of particular parents; similiar to growing up in a Jedi enclave, no doubt. Many faces blur together, unlike the few I distinctly remember due to true familiarity._

_I remember learning the basics on my homeworld of Deralia, a planet on which I was not born nor have ever seen with my own eyes. Hunting, trapping, camping. Revan's technological expertise was redirected from droid engineering, this time around; everything I know now is focused on maintainance and repair of general tech. Makes sense, for someone supposedly preferring the wilderness to civilisation. Is that why I preferred the more remote planets to the others we visited? Or did Revan prefer them as well? How much of her has survived her 'death' and how much of myself is remembered on some subconscious level, rather than planted in my mind by others?_

_I made a small fortune scouting across all of Deralia, and bought a small ship with it. I made a large fortune scouting the other planets in the system, and bought a hyperspace-capable ship with that. My 'constructed' memory of the planets on the outer rim that I visited includes Tatooine; I probably would have gone there first even if Mission's brother hadn't been there in the first place. So many planets, so many experiences...yet I recalled no specifics when it came to Anchorhead. I couldn't remember ever being there, but I couldn't remember ever landing anywhere else on Tat. It's not like there were any other settlements on the whole planet to visit, except for those of the Sand People of course._

_Come to think of it, Tatooine is where my suspicions solidified into downright distrust of the Jedi council, as I recall..._


	2. Chapter 1: En Route to Tatooine

Obtena Brator looked around the main hold of the Ebon Hawk. The crew she had somehow collected over the past five weeks.

Carth Onasi had been the first. He and Obtena had taken the last escape pod before the Sith fleet's ambush completely destroyed the Endar Spire as it was spiralling into the gravity of Taris. Carth was a Republic soldier and pilot with a paranoia complex; that hadn't stopped him from flirting with her, for some reason. He had nursed her back to health after the pod crashed into Taris' upper city, however, and his skill with a pair of blasters had come in handy plenty of times during their search for Bastila; so Obtena was glad the Jedi council's request for him to remain with the group had been approved.

Searching for Bastila and any other Republic survivors, they had met Mission Vao and Zaalbar in a lower city cantina. The young blue Twi'lek had been a wealth of local information, from the crime lord Davik (previous owner of the Ebon Hawk) to the swoop gangs that were currently turning the lower city into a war zone. It was not until the three of them had rescued her Wookiee friend from Gamorrean slavers in the sewers beneath the mutant-infested undercity that she had truly become part of the team; when Zaalbar had pledged a life debt to Obtena for the rescue, Mission had declared that wherever 'big Z' went, she went. As for Zaalbar himself, he was the strong silent type and good with a vibrosword. His combat abilities balanced out Mission's sneaking and sniping, so it was no surprise they worked well together in combat.

Bastila Shan's talents were balanced by her personality. She certainly _wasn't_ the broody or silent type. Her condescension had rubbed Obtena the wrong way from the moment they met, each believing they had rescued the other from the swoop gang that had captured the Jedi sentinel. She was completely, totally and utterly full of herself. Well, full of _something_, most likely something that came out the hind end of an undomesticated animal. Carth maintained that without Bastila's ability in battle meditation during several major encounters with the Sith, the Republic would have already been wiped from the face of the galaxy, so there was no doubt she was critical to the war effort. Obtena simply wished the woman who was at least five years her junior had the legendary humility of a Jedi.

The Mandalorian, Canderous Ordo, had been the key to the whole group getting off Taris, occupied and blockaded by the Sith. He had found that being an employee of Davik had grown even more unappealing since the empire's arrival, and had approached Obtena after she had gunned down a famous Mandalorian duelist in a death match, then won the Taris swoop race season opener (for which Bastila had been the prize... not that the prize-giving had been that easy, of course) with an offer to help them steal Davik's ship. 'All' they'd needed to do was use a specially-commissioned astromech droid to break into the Sith base and acquire the codes that would get them past the blockade without automatically being blasted out of the sky. Two squadrons of fighters aside, the plan had worked, the Sith fleet blasting Taris' entire surface into rubble as they made their getaway. At least they still had the droid.

After arriving at the Jedi enclave on Dantooine, discussing Obtena's newfound affinity with the Force and her connection to Bastila, the local Jedi council had decided to train her in their ways. Due to her astounding progress over the month that followed, even Obtena had to admit that this seemed to be the proper course of action, the necessary thing at the necessary time. Going through much of that training with Bastila had also taken her feelings toward the typically acerbic padawan in a new and surprising direction...

Last but not least, the Jedi Juhani. The first time Obtena had met the Cathar, they had nearly fought to the death. A student at the enclave on Dantooine, she had fallen to the dark side and corrupted the kath hounds, which were attacking local settlers with previously unknown ferocity. Obtena's final task before becoming a padawan had been to cleanse this taint. After nearly killing Juhani, she relented and pursuaded the Jedi guardian to turn from the dark path. As it turned out, her fall had been a final lesson from the master who had been training her, to teach her the dangers of being ruled by the anger she struggled with, before attaining the rank of Jedi knight. Like Carth, Obtena didn't care for the method of the lesson - the kath hounds had killed innocent civilians, almost sparking a war between families, among other things - but after experiencing Juhani's power firsthand, the former scout was willing to have her along.

A bizarre group, apparently brought together by the will of the Force, and they were looking to Obtena to tell them what was going on.

"Now that we're underway..." Obtena paused to clear her throat and tried again. "It's time to bring the rest of you up to date on our new mission. As most of you already know, Bastila and I shared a vision of Revan and Malak in the ruins on Dantooine, and once my training was 'complete' we went to investigate." Obtena's opinion was that she had basically been given a crash course in how to consciously use the Force; the masters had marvelled at her progress, but she remained unsure as to whether they had been impressed or worried. "We learned that the Sith lords had been searching for something called the Star Forge."

"Star Forge? What's that?" Mission asked.

"We don't know for sure. Some sort of manufacturing plant is my guess. It would explain why the Sith managed to amass such a large fleet so quickly. There was an ancient starmap in the ruins that held clues to its location, but the information was incomplete. It did however point us to several other worlds."

"Revan and Malak may have found something on each of the other worlds that completed this map," Bastila continued. "If we find all the other pieces to this puzzle it will lead us to the Star Forge, and some way to destroy it."

"That sounds like quite a supposition," Carth muttered moodily. "What if you're wrong?"

"What if we're right?" Bastila countered. "We can't ignore this. Finding the Star Forge may very well be the key to defeating the Sith."

"But you're not telling us everything, are you?" Carth continued, anger creeping into his voice. He turned to Obtena. "I know the Jedi have a habit of keeping secrets, but on a mission this important I don't like being left out of the loop."

"You were _born_ out of the loop," Obtena corrected him with a smirk.

"Cute. Any cuter and you'd pass for a Gamorrean's sister." Carth shot right back.

"Better than a Gamorrean's brother."

Carth shook his head with a frown on his face. "Look, I'm serious. None of you Jedi seem to want to tell us anything, and it's starting to irritate me. For one thing, I want to know what the council has been telling you. They kept pulling you in there and refused tell me a thing about it!"

"That is none of your concern, Carth, " Bastila said before Obtena could respond, "And you would do well to leave the matter be."

"I respect you Bastila, but you've been as close-mouthed as the rest of the council. If you won't talk to me, then maybe somebody else will." Carth raised his eyebrows at Obtena.

"They thought it was more important that I help find these star maps than stay and continue my training." she answered slowly, well aware of how much Bastila was fuming on the inside, even if it was less evident from her features. She couldn't quite bring herself to look directly at her...

"And why is that?" Carth continued. "You were a great help on Taris, but why would they keep you with us? Don't they... don't they have to train you for years on end? I can't believe they'd leave that job to another padawan, even one as powerful as Bastila... unless they're worse off after the war with Exar Kun than they let on."

With a sigh, Obtena revealed the entire truth. "There's a special bond between Bastila and myself. It's been known to happen, usually between master and apprentice; but they don't tend to happen so... abruptly, so the council made a big deal out of it. That, combined by my unprecedented progress in training, is why they think _this_ is what I should be doing."

"A bond? What kind of bond? You mean to say that you were _tied_ to Bastila in some way? I have trouble believing that." Obtena opened her mouth to assure him that it was real - she could feel Bastila's disapproval at her decision to disclose all right now - but Carth ploughed on. "You're a neophyte padawan who's been saddled with the responsibility of tracking down these starmaps. Why? That's not normal." Finally he paused long enough to notice both Obtena and Bastila frowning at him. "Look, I'm not trying to provoke you or imply that you're somehow responsible for the Jedi council but... give me a hand here, there has to be a reason!"

"Are you saying I'm _not_ needed?" Obtena growled.

"No, I don't... I didn't mean that you weren't wanted, or that I want to leave, it's just... dammit! Well I'll tell you this much, I'm not gonna wait around until I'm betrayed again."

"I am _not_ going to betray you, Carth! I'm not Saul!"

"We'll see about that won't we," Carth muttered without thinking, then saw the reaction on Obtena's face and tried to backtrack. "Look, I didn't mean it that way, I want to get to Saul, not... no, no, forget it. It seems that all I can do is insult you, isn't it? Just forget I said anything!"

As Carth stomped off to the cockpit and some of the others retreated to neutral corners, Canderous gave a short, sharp bark of a laugh, took a seat and poured himself a drink. "I've known him as long as the rest of you, save the Cathar, and I'm already fed up with him."

"Yes, well," Obtena replied with the same inflection Bastila used when she spoke the phrase, "If the leader of your clan had betrayed you and led the Republic in an assault that killed your family and laid waste your homeworld, you'd be upset too."

Canderous merely shrugged. "I've no doubt that he'll get his revenge on that traitor Saul, but he's a Republic; killing him won't be the end of it like it would be for me."

Obtena slid into the opposite seat, grabbed another cup and helped herself to the Tarisian ale that was probably a whole lot more expensive now the planet's civilisation had been obliterated. To Canderous' envy she knocked it back in one go, then poured them both another round. "Tell me another war story," she asked. Bastila's disapproval kicked up another notch in the back of her mind, but she grinned at the Mandalorian and ignored it.

Bastila herself remained concerned. Obtena had a way with people that matched Revan's; she was worried by how much of the Sith lord's personality shone through this new identity. The Jedi council had said that too much of Revan had been lost, that it was better to reconstruct her memory from scratch and hope that she may lead them to a way to defeat the Sith. At moments like this, the tiniest flicker of doubt would spark, and Bastila had to remind herself to trust in the will of the council. Still, such blatent shows of emotion... listening to the battle-hungry Mandalorian's horror stories... and drinking! How unbecoming of a Jedi.

As Bastila stalked off to ask Carth for their ETA at Tatooine, she wondered if she was using her disapproval to ensure Obtena could not pick up anything else via their connection. Of everyone on board, she alone knew who Obtena used to be. She was willing to allow Obtena to lead the mission, but she had to resist her charm, resist the urge to envy how easily she could simply jump in and get along with whomever happened to be around at the time. She musn't let Obtena's relaxed attitude and disdain for the Jedi way pull her to the dark side.

And yet...

Their relationship had changed during that month of intensive training. At first they had been at each other's throats on an almost daily basis, and perhaps the only reason it had never come to blows was because of their daily combat training. But then, practically overnight, Obtena's behaviour toward her had changed, and she had not been sure how to respond to it. As their bond deepened, she became aware that the woman had found a new enjoyment in their... disagreements. She'd also taken to teasing the padawan, challenging her patience and discipline. On one hand, Bastila supposed she welcomed the exercise; how she sometimes reacted to Obtena proved she needed the practice. But on the other, there was something else she could sense through the bond, something that flared a little brighter during her 'mellow moments' as Obtena called them.

Bastila didn't know what it was, which disturbed her, but it felt... warm, and compassionate. It was an odd friendship they had forged, but these were odd circumstances. So she found herself enjoying those moments, to the point of almost forgetting who Obtena had been, what she had done.

But of course, Bastila could never forget. She could never let her guard down completely. So she worried, and hoped any of the thousand ways this could go wrong would never come to pass.


	3. Chapter 2: Tatooine

Obtena stood upon the threshhold of this sorry excuse for a spaceport, sliding a foot across the edge of one of the holes in the 'strip' of metal at her feet. She glanced up at the door hanging above, 'teeth' ready to chomp down and into those holes whenever it was required of the wide metal mouth to close. It was tempting to make it happen, to use the Force to smash the thing down into place with a satisfying crunch. With all the sand, there'd be crunching involved, she was sure. Chomp, chomp, chomp...

Behind her, Bastila and Juhani glanced at each other cautiously. They could both tell how quickly Obtena's mood had dropped in the last few minutes, and the former knew she was past the point where suggesting she follow her training to calm her mind would only make it worse. The problem with the bond was that the padawan could feel Bastila's desire for her to do so without prompting; not voicing it was only a small mercy at the moment.

"So," Obtena grumbled, "We come to Tatooine first, because this is where Mission's loser of a brother is supposed to be. We get here. We discover a stowaway in the form of an annoyingly innocent little girl who can't even understand Basic, take on a misdirected shipment of gizka which are now loose in the ship, and we learn Bastila's _oh-so-charming_ mother is also in town." She turned to Juhani. "Any parents, siblings, aunts or uncles, cousins to the _n_th degree we should expect to run into?"

"I don't think so," Juhani muttered, her gaze dropping to her booted feet.

"Obtena..." Bastila began.

"I know, I know. Sorry. Let's just get on with this before my headache really kicks in."

As they walked down the road, which was little more than a strip of hard-baked desert that had not been built on, Obtena could hear Bastila tugging at the blue robes that had previously been occupied by the aged Jedi Nemo. While Obtena was getting into the swing of her month of intensive training, he had been sent to investigate the ruins where Revan and Malak had discovered the starmap on Dantooine, ony to perish there. Obtena wondered why the council would send someone else if they believed the bound pair were the ones destined to see this mission through, and refused to feel any responsibility for the old Jedi's death. She still couldn't tell if Bastila was uncomfortable with wearing a dead man's clothes, or if she was still not used to wearing anything other than that rediculous (albeit arousingly skintight) peach-coloured outfit. _The robes match her eyes far better anyway,_ Obtena thought to herself, trying to distract herself from everything else going on in her head. _Maybe if we dye that 'skinsuit' blue..._

Obtena didn't consciously notice Bastila's irregular intake of breath, but automatically trained her thoughts elsewhere. Juhani's red robes suited her pale yellow fur well too, and they added a little colour to her wide feline eyes. Cathar were quite rare since the Mandalorians had decimated their homeworld, in the run-up before their war on the Republic. She wasn't as different from Humans as wookiees. _Must be nice not to have to worry about climbing into a cold bed. _She toyed with the prospect of having a Cathar waiting in her bunk each night, but immediately dismissed the notion. While she had no doubt she could pry Juhani out of her solitary shyness, she was too much the Jedi knight; whatever her feelings, she'd regret indulging them. _Besides, she's already had one taste of the dark side; if I end up using her just to distract myself from my Bastila crush, I'd probably end up sending her right back down that path._

She looked down at her own plain, brown padawan robes. She was going to have to do something about these. Sure, she looked like a Jedi, and that was supposed to be a good thing, but brown just didn't cut it. If the Jedi backing her up were wearing blue and red, she should probably wear green, or yellow... except that wouldn't do as much for her eyes as either of the others-

"What _are_ you thinking about?" Bastila interrupted her line of thought with an exasperated voice, no longer able to contain herself. "You should be concentrating on where you are and what you're doing, not worrying about... about colour coordination!"

Never one to back down from these arguments, the chastised padawan voiced the first response that came to mind. "Oh, so that's why you agreed to wear the robes after all, is it? How long were you wearing that peach thing, anyway? Since your battle meditation developed? And the council didn't wag their finger at you _once_ for your choice of wardrobe, did they? Too busy zipping you back and forth across the front lines, saving the galaxy." Obtena mockingly wagged her finger at Bastila as if to make up for lost time (or lack of opportunity to scold her for a good reason). "We all know it's far too sexy for the average Jedi to ever consider wearing, but the saviour of the Republic is _special_."

Bastila blushed slightly. "It's not... it was a gift, and it's my favourite colour... besides, when one is lauded as a saviour of the Republic, one's appearance does become a factor-"

"Guess that explains the elaborate hair and makeup, too," Obtena snarked. "Look, you have your way of calming your mind, I have mine; mindlessly chanting the same phrase a hundred times just doesn't do it for me. As for where and what, we're at the Czerka Corporation's Anchorhead office, and we're going to go in and ask about Mission's brother. And don't complain about this not being our mission, or I'll keep you too busy to find your mother."

"Which isn't our mission either," Bastila began to explain, but sighed under Obtena's withering stare. "...And I'm not even sure I want to see her. I told you how we never got along. But if she really is sick... well, we'll see."

"Obtena..." Juhani whispered, her eyes gazing farther down the road.

"I know, I feel it too. They probably knew we were here from the moment we landed, and now they're lying in wait." Obtena hit the door control. "So let them wait." _Besides, _she added to herself, _killing some dark Jedi will probably improve my mood._

The head of Czerka Corporation's mining efforts on Tatooine was a tired-looking middle-aged woman who annoyed Obtena with her beaurocratic behaviour. She didn't even introduce herself as they stepped into the office, but dejectedly rattled off what must have become her usual greeting to newcomers. "If this is about employment, I'm afraid all of our mining positions are full. And before you ask, we are also no longer selling hunting licences."

Obtena looked around the room with a frown, then turned it on the officer. "I'm looking for a miner named Griff Vao."

The woman blinked, realising she was going to have to actually think her way through the conversation. "Griff? Uh... there's no Griff here. Never heard of him. No, I... I don't remember his name on the Czerka payroll." She must have been verging on depression after all her time here, putting so little effort into the lie.

"Are you certain?" Obtena asked frostily. "I might leave sooner if I knew where he was."

"Oh, the Twi'lek!" The officer 'realised'. "Yes, of course I remember Griff. We hired him some time ago. Not a good worker, according to his crew chief: always complaining and faking injuries to get out of work. He entered false timesheets and slept through his shifts. He was even suspected of stealing Czerka Corp supplies, though we could never prove it."

"Yes, that sounds like him."

"We would have fired him, but we needed workers. It would have been better for him if we had, then the Sand People wouldn't have gotten him."

"Sand people?" Bastila asked when Obtena paused, distracted, her eyes unfocusing. _Is she familiar with the phrase? _Bastila wondered, _Or is she confused because she isn't?_

"He was lost in a Sand People raid we suffered not too long ago. There were prisoners taken, but our rescue parties never found anyone alive. In the end, it just wasn't cost-effective to keep searching. All miners sign a waiver absolving Czerka Corporation of liability in these circumstances."

Obtena pressed the heel of her palm where the bridge of her nose met her forehead, in an attempt to at least delay the oncoming headache. "Did the Sand People kill Griff or not?"

"We didn't find his body so we have to assume he was taken prisoner, but if he is still alive, I couldn't say." The officer paused. "That's all I can tell you...I shouldn't even have said this much, it's all priviledged corporate information. I could lose my job."

"How tragic," Obtena muttered.

"What about hunting licences?" Bastila pressed, eager to change the subject.

"As I said, we're no longer selling them. There are too many people cavorting outside the city walls as it is."

"Why would we need one in the first place?"

"We use them to ensure that only people judged fit by Cerka Corporation are allowed outside the city. We don't allow casual exploration because of legal concerns. We take no responsibility for loss of life out on the Dune Sea. It's just so we can keep track of people. No one leaves without a Czerka hunting licence."

"What if they have lightsabers?" Obtena growled. At this point she was quite ready to cut through whatever lay between her and the desert, be it stone walls, metal gates or corporate employees. It seemed that this was not lost on the haggard woman, who was quickly getting the impression that it would be better to give this newcomer whatever she wanted. Jedi or Sith, someone with two lightsabers was probably not someone to say 'no' to.

"Well... normally we charge two hundred credits, but I could make an exception... if... you agree to perform a task for us while you're out there? The Sand People are becoming a serious problem, destroying our sandcrawlers and killing our miners. One particular tribe is the worst, it's as if their chieftan has decided to wage a war against us! I would like their attacks... terminated. Bring me their gaffi sticks as proof. If you agree to do this, I'll give you a hunting licence now and a bounty for each gaffi stick later. I'll give a bonus for the chieftan's."

"Fine," Obtena spoke without another thought; anything to get the damn licence and get away from this woman. She handprinted the datawork as quickly as possible.

"Now, just so we understand each other, this is an enforcable contract. Czerka Corporation takes this situation very seriously," the officer told her as she handed over the document and a datapad. "Here is your license, and a few directions. We believe their enclave is to the far south of the Dune Sea. You might try following one of our sandcrawlers; they are regularly attacked. I wouldn't mind you escorting them."

Without another word, Obtena spun on her heel and headed for the door, ignoring the expressions of her companions. The officer said some parting words, but Obtena didn't bother to listen.

Apparently the dark Jedi who had been planning to ambush them had tired of waiting. There were three to greet them as they stepped outside, wearing identical grey clothes with black boots, gloves and hoods. The center one spoke: "Lord Malak was most displeased when he learned you had escaped Taris alive! He has promised a great reward to whoever destroys you!"

_Perfect timing,_ Obtena thought as she raised her hand, palm upward. She would teach the arrogant Sith what happened when he wasted his breath talking. As her companions ignited their lightsabers, she clenched her hand into a fist. The leading dark Jedi spasmed and clutched at his throat, desperately gasping for breath. His fellows jumped forward to break her concentration, but the Jedi were ready. As Bastila faced off with one, saberstaff to saberstaff, Juhani leapt into the air and brought her blade crashing down on the other bearing a weapon in each hand.

It was over quickly. The vocal dark Jedi lived only long enough to watch his compatriots defeated. Obtena had never allowed him to use his weapon, or even reached for her own; she'd just kept on crushing his throat until he had suffocated to death. Bastila looked at Obtena's face and saw Revan, saw the face that must have been behind the mask she had taken to wearing since the turning point of the Mandalorian war. _The same face she must have worn as she killed the Republic captain before we faced off... spirits, I don't even remember his name...  
_

But as she watched, Obtena took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled, the frown easing from her face as she relaxed. "I feel better," she said before bending down to loot the Sith corpses. "What in the Outer Rim is this?" she continued, holding up the second weapon of Juhani's opponent. It was basically a lightsaber, but almost half the size. Juhani looked over the other two when it became clear Bastila wasn't going to.

"Most Jedi cannot successfully wield two full lightsabers like you can... Obtena," Bastila stammered. Obtena shrugged and tossed it into the pile of items collecting in the sand amidst the bodies. Then she had another thought, and pulled the hoods and gloves off the Sith and stowed them along with the other items in a spare pack.

"Look at this," Juhani said, handing a datapad to Obtena. It bore the images and descriptions of both herself and Bastila.

"Hm, he wasn't kidding when he said Malak was offering a great reward. Maybe he'll give me half of this if I turn you in, Bastila," she added with a wink. Bastila was too disconcerted to respond beyond making various indignant noises. On the one hand she was still shocked to see Revan coming so close to the surface, but on the other, the amnesiac Sith lord's mood _was_ apparently improved; which had its own unwelcome implications. "Don't fret so," Obtena continued, sincerly enough. "I'm sure you'd rather I had used these," she patted her lightsabers, "Instead of using the Force so... violently, but in the end, it's no worse than what you do. More efficient, even."

"What do you mean?" Bastila whispered.

"You can throw the enemy around, or stun them, or freeze them like Juhani did Carth and Canderous when I was sent to... retrieve her." She paused to grin at the Cathar, who returned it with a forlorn smile. "Which is worse, using the Force to actively harm an opponent, or disabling them so that they're at the mercy of your lightsaber?"

Bastila considered the question before reluctantly admitting, "I'm... not sure."

"Using the Force, or what is essentially a burning blade; either way, you're responsible for the death of your opponent. That should matter more than how you do it. Frankly I don't see the distinction with either method, especially against other Force users."

"Yes, I've noticed." More than once Bastila had commented on one aspect or another of Obtena's behaviour during her training. As the bond between them had grown, these disagreements had eventually become shorthanded to Obtena sensing Bastila's disapproval, and Bastila sensing Obtena's indifference. They rarely had to speak of it anymore. This time, however, Obtena felt the need to make sure Bastila saw her point. She rose to her feet and took Bastila's hand in hers.

"In the end, it comes down to one very simple rule. I learned this rule early on, visiting all kinds of hostile locations. You've been cloistered in that academy on Dantooine for most of your life, and you've only been in battle since the Sith war started." She knew Bastila didn't like to talk about it, but maybe bringing it up would drive it home. "I'm betting you didn't come face to face with death, with being personally responsible for it, until the day you faced Revan, did you?" Bastila started, pulling her hand from Obtena's, staring at her with wide eyes. Obtena continued, "The rule is simple, Bastila: in a fight to the death, be the killer."

"My people believe this also," Juhani agreed, "Though it does make me wonder why you did not slay me in the grove."

"Well, I'd already proven my superiority, and my curiosity got the better of me," Obtena quipped, then smirked. "Besides, you were so cute, I just couldn't finish you off." She handed the extra pack to the Cathar as Jedi knight gave her low chuckle, one step from the purr she used so rarely. "Here. Why don't you take this back to the ship and bring Mission up to date." Juhani nodded and headed back they way they had come.

Obtena turned to Bastila. "You okay now?"

"I think so, yes." Obtena let the uncomfortable silence linger just long enough, then squeezed Bastila's hand again.

"Come on, let's go find your mother."

As the pair sought the cantina, Bastila eventually murmured, "It wasn't a fight to the death."

"Hm?"

"I told you before, we were meant to capture Revan, not kill her. It was never meant to be a fight to the death."

"It was for Revan," Obtena said.

The padawan could feel the turmoil her companion experienced whenever the subject of Revan arose, but she was too busy scrutinizing shop fronts to notice the look of apprehension on Bastila's face.


	4. Chapter 3

"You're lucky I don't play for credits, you old geezer."

Carth frowned at the side deck he held. By now he was used to Mission's cracks about his advanced age from her teen perspective, but his consistant failure to win even a single hand of pazaak against the young scoundrel was beginning to frustrate him. Obtena had suggested keeping her occupied, but he was starting to suspect that asking Mission to teach him how to play the game may not have been worth the aggravation.

Obtena's voice had been cold when she asked; she was still upset. Hell, he was almost as angry with himself as she was...

With a resigned sigh, he pulled another card from the main deck and laid it down with the others on his side of the table. He blinked, then checked his math. "Hah!" he exclaimed. "Nineteen!"

"Lucky draw," Mission agreed, unphased.

You're going to need some the Force to get exactly twenty, kid."

Carth grinned as he watched the Twi'lek bite back her traditional retort whenever anyone called her a kid. "You'll stand on nineteen?" she asked instead.

"Darn straight, I'll stand."

Mission smirked, blew on the tips of her fingers and drew a card from the main deck. Her new total came to twenty-two.

"Bust!" Carth declared, slapping the tabletop.

"Not so fast." With all the style she could muster, Mission pulled a +/-2 card from the side deck in her hand and smacked it down, minus side up, reducing her total to twenty.

Carth slumped back in his seat. "I don't believe it."

"Maybe that's why you keep losing," Mission said as matter-of-factly as she could.

"It's Obtena's side deck!" Carth decided, waving about the cards in question. "She hasn't got as many of those plus/minus cards as you have, and I never deal any of the good ones!"

"She admitted her side deck's not up to spec yet, but you'll never learn to play if it's too easy to win."

"It's too easy for _you_ to win. Maybe I should stop boring you, let Zaalbar give you a challange."

The Wookiee looked up from the other side of the room, where he was piecing together a grenade, and replied with a grumbling growl. Carth looked to Mission with raised eyebrows.

"He said to leave him out of this," she giggled. "Big Z's been hanging around with me long enough for him to know better, y'know?"

"Let it never be said that I can't follow a Wookiee's example, then," Carth said with a nod to Zaalbar, then looked back at Mission. "I guess I won't be pulling your arms off, either. Unless you were cheating..." he added, eyes sparkling with humour as they narrowed.

"Me? Cheat? Against you!?" Mission exclaimed in mock affrontary. "As if I'd have to, old man!"

"I just hope I'm there the day Obtena wins a match, that's all I'm saying," Carth said as he began to tidy up Obtena's cards. Mission watched him intently for a moment.

"Carth?"

"Yeah."

"Thanks for the effort."

The pilot grinned at her. "No problem."

Mission stood, stretched, then patted a gizka on the head when it noticed her moving and cooed for attention. There must have been a couple dozen hopping around the ship by now. Canderous had mentioned one of the vendors by the spaceport sold poison specifically for gizka, but no one had bought any yet. Perhaps everyone had silently agreed with her that they were too cute to kill. Except the Mandalorian of course; he'd probably say there would be no honour or challenge in killing such weak, defenceless creatures.

The Twi'lek wandered over to his usual spot starboard cargo bay. He was leaning against the swoop bike they had brought with them from Taris, polishing a purple breastplate. The Mandalorian had dragged the crimelord Davik's corpse into the Ebon Hawk and waited until they were safely away from Taris, before stripping off the armor and ejecting the body into space when they came out of lightspeed in the Dantooine system.

Though she'd never admit it, Canderous spooked her. She had heard plenty of tales about the Mandalorians' exploits before and during the war with the Republic. They had never reached Taris, but Juhani said Revan had visited the world during the war. Had it been threatened? Had Revan decided it had been worth saving?

Canderous was even older than Carth, but he was a good deal bigger. With that heavy blaster weapon he always toted around, he was an even more intimidating sight than her Wookiee companion. He glanced at her without pausing in his work, and said nothing. She nearly kept walking, but paused as she remembered Obtena's ability to get along with people. It was a handy trait that Mission wouldn't mind learning. Perhaps a neutral topic to start with...

"Do we have to leave the ramp down?" she asked. "It's hot enough baking in the ship, without actually letting the heat _in_."

"The Hawk doesn't have a doorbell," Canderous' voice grated. "We wouldn't want to lock out the Princess Trio if we have to make a quick getaway, now, would we?"

"I'll be glad when Obtena and the others come back," Mission admitted, sliding herself up to sit on upon the side of the swoop, and doing her best to ignore the Mandalorian's glare. "I hope Griff isn't in too much trouble when they find him."

"Your brother doesn't sound like an honourable man," Canderous grunted. He didn't come out and say that he thought looking for Griff was a waste of time, but it was obviously what he meant. This was the closest Canderous had ever come to tact.

"You think I shouldn't bother looking for him? He's my brother!" Canderous stared at her, not understanding why that made a difference; what good was a brother - in arms or in blood - if he had no honour? "Griff may have his faults, but I can't just forget he exists." Mission lapsed into silence when it became clear Canderous wasn't getting it, then tried a different tack. "Obtena thinks we should find him."

"Yes," Canderous admitted, "But she doesn't have any illusions about what kind of man he is. She's only doing it so you'll stop whining. Maybe she feels obligated for dragging you along on this quest." He paused as he put on the armor chestplate, testing its size. Davik had been smaller than Canderous, but the Mandalorian had finished modifying it and it fit well enough. "At least she had the sense to leave you behind. You'd probably make a mistake in battle and get her killed."

"Would not," Mission huffed, then appraised Canderous' new look with a critical eye. "You know, for a big, strong, tough Mandalorian, you look kind of... silly in purple." Canderous gave her a venemous glare and pulled the chestplate off. "Why'd you wait until now, anyway? We were on Dantooine for over a month."

"There were no challenges on Dantooine worthy of the effort."

"Not even your own people?" Canderous only frowned and shook his head, unwilling to explain or even talk about it. Mission shrugged. "You could've modified it for _me_. Blue and purple would go together so much better..."

"It's too heavy for you. And too hot out there to wear it, anyway," Canderous decided before changing the subject. "Tatooine is one big desert with rocks sticking out. I'd heard that some of my people had come here after the war, but I don't know what happened to them." Canderous grew still as his eyes glazed over with memory. "The world of my clan, Ordo, was much like this - dust basins and rock crags - but at least my world had some green around the equator. This place is just sand all over."

"The only green I ever saw on Taris were plants in pots. Or Twi'leks, or slimy Rodians. I can't wait to see Kashyyyk's trees. Maybe when we get there Big Z will finally tell us what trouble he left behind. And if it's still there, well, what better way to come back to it than with a bunch of friends like us?"

Canderous shrugged. "I don't consider any of you friends, but that doesn't mean I won't stand by the Wookiee when the time comes. Obtena is the only one on this ship who understands me. The 'soldier' still gets grumpy whenever we're in the same room, and the Cathar..."

"Why do you call Carth that?"

"It's something he made a big deal of, the difference between a soldier and a warrior. My kind conqours, while his protect the innocent from people like me. Protecting the innocent can be a worthy cause too, if they're truly worthy of the effort..." Canderous frowned again. He had never considered the Republic to be as worthy as the Jedi who had been the cause of their downfall in the war, but for a moment he could almost empathize with Carth. He wasn't used to it, and it bothered him. _Must be thinking too much. Probably Obtena's fault._

"Well, maybe you shouldn't take it personally," Mission suggested. "Setting aside the fact that you two were on opposite sides in the last war, he's got other problems while you're just along for the ride. I think the only time he's not grumpy is when Obtena is around... most of the time."

"Hmph, so you noticed that too. Too bad she's not interested."

"In Carth?"

"In men."

"Oh." Mission had seen enough on Taris not to be totally surprised by this revelation, but it was news to her. For as long as she had known them, Obtena and Carth had been getting on each others' nerves - in a friendly way, not like Obtena and Bastila back then - and Mission had assumed they were together. Then Obtena had to become a Jedi, and she figured Carth had been so angry because it meant they'd be breaking up. She'd never heard of Jedi having 'relations', and a month of sneaking around the enclave on Dantooine seemed to confirm it.

"She isn't the only one, either..." Canderous added. Mission turned to follow his gaze and watched as Juhani paced up the loading ramp. She slipped off the swoop to greet her as the Mandalorian finished his thought, "...Makes you wonder exactly what the Jedi get up to in their temples and enclaves, heh." The teenager shot Canderous an imitation of his own glare, having no doubt exactly how dirty the Mandalorian's thoughts were. Juhani, for her part, ignored him completely.

"What's that?" Mission asked, looking at the bundle Juhani carried with unbridled curiousity.

"We were attacked by a few dark Jedi-"

"Dark Jedi? Is Obtena okay?"

"She's fine. Bastila's mother is in Anchorhead. They are finding her now."

"Any news of Griff?" Mission asked, then saw the Cathar's face fall. "What? What is it?"

"Czerka believes he has been captured by a violent indigenous race known as Sand People. They have been attacking Czerka and its employees ever since they arrived on the planet. Try not to worry, Mission; he is probably still alive."

"We have to go rescue him!" the teen Twi'lek cried. "We can't just leave him with those... those monsters!"

"We will," Juhani quietly assured her. "We have already obtained permission to leave Anchorhead. I am sure Obtena will come up with a plan as soon as she has made sure the rest of the settlement is safe."

Beaming with relief, Mission surprised Juhani with an impulsive hug. "I knew I could count on you guys! There's definitely fringe benefits to being friends with Jedi." She heard Canderous' short sharp bark of a laugh behind her, but ignored it.

* * *

When Obtena had taken a hesitant Bastila by the wrist and led her into the cantina, the latter may not have said 'oh dear' but their bond made the sentiment clear. Unfortunately, Helena Shan's local reputation as a rancor was due to her personality more than her weathered, wrinkled skin. The family reunion... did not go well.

Back outside, Obtena tried to comfort Bastila, but the Jedi knight flinched away. She needed to regain control of her emotions, and indulging in physical contact would probably have the opposite effect... so why did refusing Obtena's gesture provoke a twinge of regret? The abruptness, perhaps. Bastila looked at her and saw that her friend knew she was sorry, just not ready to talk. Obtena nodded in silent understanding, gestured in the direction that they had yet to explore, and together they continued on.

The only place of interest left between the cantina and the gate that led to the sands beyond Anchorhead was the droid shop of an Ithorian named Yuka Laka. Obtena had been pleasantly surprised by T3-M4, the astromech that had proved invaluable during the assault on the Taris Sith base, so she decided to take a look. Yuka was annoyingly happy to see new customers in his shop and immediately began to sing the praises of the only droid he actually had to sell.

Obtena looked at the rust-red droid from across the shop, it's glowing orange eyes observing them almost menacingly; yet it's silent watchfulness gave Obtena an odd sense of safety. She had to admit to herself that she was interested in it from the moment she saw it, but Yuka knew little about it other than the fact that it could understand the bizarre language of the Sand People. He suggested they talk to it themselves.

"Greeting: Hello to you, prospective purchaser!" HK-47 piped up cheerily before she even addressed it. "I am referred to as HK-47, a fully functional Systech Corporation droid skilled in both combat and protocol functions. Query: Would you be so kind as to purchase this model from Yuka Laka? It would serve my purposes to be removed from his ownership."

"Combat _and_ protocol? Outline your functions," Obtena ordered.

"Refusal: It is not desirable for me to reveal core functions while still in the possession of Yuka Laka, prospective purchaser. It is sufficient to say that I am a fully capable translator and cultural analyst, and I am also proficient in personal combat."

"Why are you keeping information to yourself?"

"Explanation: The Ithorian has fitted me with a restraining bolt, if you must know. With it in place, access to much of my memory core is restricted. Not to mention that the fool Ithorian might raise his asking price if he knew more, or make enquiries into my history. Neither outcome is beneficial to me. Conjecture: It is possible that the Ithorian placed the restraining bolt to prevent my return to a previous owner. It is also possible that the removal of the bolt will not restore memory functions. Without my memory, I do not know if I know the answer. Do not interpret this as a reduction of my worth, however. My capabilities are quite expansive."

"How do we know you won't run off when the restraining bolt is removed?" Bastila asked.

"Assurance: I am fully autonomous, but lack resources. I will grant loyal service in exchange for proper maintainance. As well, it is rare that I am able to utilize my full array of abilities. You seem likely to give the opportunity to do so."

"What makes you say that?"

HK-47 gestured at the lightsabers hanging from their belts. "Extrapolation: You are not farmers or diplomats. Jedi have a reputation for violent conflict. We will mesh well."

Bastila wanted to refute the droid's reasoning, but Obtena spoke first. "Why would I want you instead of some ordinary battle droid?"

"Disclosure: Finesse! Battle droids hold battle_fields_. I am capable of eliminating a very specific type of target."

"You're beginning to sound like an assassin," Bastila said.

"Retraction: Droids built for such a function face strict regulation and often have unique difficulties with previous owners. I therefore make no claim to that designation." At this point, its voice took on a clearly insincere tone. "I am a law-abiding droid! Yes indeed, law-abiding! That's me!"

Obtena laughed quietly. "I'll see about purchasing you."

HK-47 leaned forward and spoke at half volume. "Statement: The fool Ithorian has decided I am to be an expensive purchase. He does this out of greed, and not out of knowledge of my true capabilities. Advisement: I have observed him. He is a coward, and will be responsive to... aggressive bargaining."

Obtena leaned over and lowered her voice in turn. "Does Yuka Laka know you talk about him like this?"

The droid's voice took on a suffering tone. "Statement: I wish only to be purchased, and away from ill treatment at the hands of this poorly-skilled mechanic. I have no desire to be subtle." The voice quickly switched from pain to pleading. "Qualification: Er, of course, I shall be quite pleasant to you, should you purchase me. Please?"

As Obtena headed back over to Yuka Laka, Bastila whispered to her, "You're not seriously considering purchasing that droid, are you? It sounds far too unreliable, not to mention potentially dangerous."

"It might be able to help us get Griff back from the Sand People without a slaughter. Surely you'd prefer that to a bloodbath, yes?" Bastila's only reply was a raised eyebrow. _Damn bond,_ Obtena realised, _she knows that's not why I'm buying it_. "Fine. I like it, and I just feel... having it around will be a good thing. I've never seen evidence of such a specialised personality. And if worst comes to worst, I'm sure I can make the credits back at the local swoop track. We passed the registration office a while back."

"I wasn't aware you'd noticed," Bastila replied. "I must admit I'm curious to see you race for myself, after missing your performance on Taris; but I doubt we should indulge my curiosity while our mission is at hand."

Obtena paused a moment before she spoke. "Perhaps you could use the distraction." Bastila looked away, and the padawan continued hurredly. "I'm sure Mission could. The next sandcrawler doesn't leave Anchorhead until dawn tomorrow. That gives us about twelve hours to either stew over things, or keep ourselves occupied. And you're the one who lauded the virtues of the occasional diversion, remember?"

HK-47 had proved correct when it came to the price Yuka Laka was trying to sell it for. Obtena used her natural charm to bring it down some, then drew upon the Force to persuade him to lower it even further. _That should give Bastila something else to think about,_ Obtena thought with a sly smile. She could already feel the familiar disapproval kicking back into gear via the bond. _When all else fails, find comfort in familiar patterns._ Obtena bought the droid for half Yuka's original asking price.

Obtena was positive that, if the droid had a mouth, it would have been smiling. Or perhaps offering a vicious grin. "Statement: I see that you have purchased me, master. I find this a satisfactory arrangement. My restraining bolt will be deactivated when you take possession of me. Am I to accompany you now? Shall I kill something for you?"

Obtena blinked. "Kill something for me?" The content of the statement was not as unexpected as the enthusiastic manner in which it was delivered.

"Answer: Indeed. I am most eager to engange in some unadulterated violence. At your command of course, master..."

Despite a withering look from Bastila, Obtena nodded. "Travel with us now. We'll take you back to our ship for the night. If you're lucky, you'll get to kill something tomorrow," she added with a false optimism that was apparently lost on the homicidal droid.

"Statement: I am certain you will make adequate use of my primary functions. My gears are quivering with anticipation, master."

* * *

Author's note: Yes, unlike the others, I'm including near-complete HK-47 dialogue, because... well, you just gotta. You can't not.


	5. Chapter 4

"Now we're out of that shop," Obtena began as they headed back to the spaceport, "I'd like to know more about your functionality."

"Statement: I know some elements of my functionality, master, but not all."

"I thought you said removing the bolt would restore your memory."

"Qualification: I suspected that it might, master; but without memory, I had no way of knowing whether or not I knew that was true."

"So you lied to us," Bastila suggested, still disapproving of Obtena's purchase.

"Qualification: Erm... not so much. I spoke out of ignorance. I assumed the Ithorian was responsible for my memory loss. That does not mean I am not a fully loyal droid willing to serve its master. Right, master?"

Obtena was not convinced. She had noticed that the droid's voice was now consistantly malevolent, far more so than before she had purchased it. Why she still felt safe - or at least comfortable - in its presence, she failed to understand. "How can you not know parts of your own functionality?" she asked.

"Answer: There have been numerous repairs and tampering to my system, master. Several systems are not operating as they should be. The fact that my memory is incomplete may be due to meatbag incompetance... or something else I am unaware of."

_Meatbag?_ "Are you actually damaged, though?"

"Answer: I believe I have been damaged several times in the past, master. I have always been repaired, but perhaps full functionality has not been restored."

"Well, I should be able to do better. Not sure about your memory, though..."

"Caution: Some of my motor functions can be safely repaired, master, but anything in relation to my memory core is extremely sensitive. I have safeguards installed to protect the core, that I cannot deactivate. It is not impossible that other, lesser memory functions could be restored. The deeper functions of my memory, however, would still be inadvisable to tamper with. Conjecture: It is possible that some external stimulus might result in the memory core being reactivated, but I am unaware of any programming systems to do so."

"If _you_ think there's a chance your memory might return under pre-arranged conditions, that's probably the case. Let's hear what you know right now."

"Observation: I can handle various sorts of heavy weaponry with ease, master. My physical abilities are well beyond those of your average meatbag, as are my sensor functions. An assassin, if you would."

"An assassin droid," Bastila repeated, treating Obtena to her 'I told you so' face.

"Caution: Shh, meatbag. Such function in a droid is highly illegal. I would truly hate to be turned into scrap. That would be a waste of my genius engineering." The droid returned its attention to its master before Bastila could voice a complaint. "Statement: My assassination functions are currently non-functional, having been deactivated by the meatbag Yuka Laka. Were they functional, you as my master would be able to specify a target, and I would operate independantly to the best of my ability to terminate it."

"Can your assassination protocol be reactivated?" Obtena asked, provoking another glare from the Jedi knight. "To send after Malak when we're done here," she explained.

"Answer: Not that I know of, master. I still possess all my normal combat and stealth abilities, however."

"You don't have to call me master, by the way."

"Query: Don't I, master? I was under the impression that meatbags such as yourself enjoyed such forms of address."

Bastila frowned at the impertinent machine. "Meatbags?"

"Retraction: Did I say that out loud? I apologise, master. While you are a meatbag I suppose I should not call you such."

"You just 'called me such' again," its master pointed out, not that she felt insulted. "Bastila too, only a minute ago."

HK dropped the fake apologetic voice and opted for sheepish admission instead. "Explanation: It's just that... you have all those squishy parts, master. And all that water. How the constant sloshing doesn't drive you mad, I have no idea."

Obtena opened her mouth, then closed it. She glanced in Bastila's direction, but the younger Jedi only shrugged; this was her mess, she had to deal with it. "Neither do I, come to think of it," the padawan finally said.

"Statement: Now do you understand the travails of my existence, master? Surely it does not compare to your existence, but still."

"I survive. Somehow."

"Commentary: As do I. It is our lot in life, I suppose, master. Shall we find something to kill to cheer ourselves up?"

* * *

Leaving T3-M4 to alter the dark Jedi robes and keep an eye on the ship (and HK-47), Obtena and the crew of the Ebon Hawk ate dinner in the hunter's lodge. Canderous and Zaalbar greedily tucked into the wraid meat and Jawa beer, while the rest were more subdued. Obtena had offered to be the one to ask the local hunters about the various inhabitants of the Dune Sea, but Bastila had insisted she be the one to do it, given her familiarity with hunting. She wasn't about to let her emotional pain impede her duty. Still, she managed to 'pull a rancor' as Mission called it, when her aloof manner rubbed half of the hunters the wrong way, usually resulting in their decision to leave the building. The owner of the lodge was hardly complaining, however; the large meal everyone was sharing would more than make up for it.

Afterwards, the group walked the short distance down the road to the swoop registration office. The local races were run by a Hutt and the track was unofficial as far as the rest of the galaxy was concerned, but none of that mattered to Obtena. She rushed back to the ship for her swoop bike while the others made their way to the track's starting line on the edge of town; apparently Czerka made an exception for the races when it came to letting people outside the wall, probably due to Hutt bribes.

Bastila started having doubts as she watched Obtena and Zaalbar give the vehicle a quick once-over, discussing the condition of a potentially explosive accelerator. "Are you sure this is a good idea?" she asked during a lull in the conversation. "It's getting dark, and even if the Sand People don't attack at night, you've had enough of the local brew to make you... jovial."

Obtena chuckled, her good mood obvious to all. "Once it's dark, the stars will light my way. And I'm not drunk, just mentally lubricated."

"And that's supposed to be a good thing?"

"You don't have to worry about me, sweetie," the padawan giggled. She was obviously drunk enough to be more forward than usual.

"I just don't want you to blow yourself up. You're too important... to the mission."

"Meh. The prototype was fine for two runs, I doubt it'll blow on the third... no no, _this_ one goes here, _that_ one goes there," she explained to the Wookiee, who adjusted the hardware accordingly.

"Are you sure? Have you taken sand contamination into account?"

Obtena and Zaalbar looked at each other. "Ah," the human said, and her furry engineering friend answered with a troubled whine. The padawan thought the matter over before a grin cleared her troubled brow. "It definitely won't be running so well by the third tier, but if I clear the intake right when I hit an acceleration ramp..." Zaalbar nodded with a grunt of agreement and they both went right back to what they were doing.

Bastila couldn't believe her ears. "_That's_ your solution? Go _faster_?"

"It'll probably work."

"You're insane."

Obtena's grin widened, doing nothing to disprove Bastila's assertion.

When the hastily-named Team Gizka was called up, Obtena hopped into the cockpit and got the swoop bike into position. She didn't go any easier on the accelerator than usual when the green lamp lit, the backwash blasting the wall behind the starting line. She was off into the darkening horizon in seconds, and everyone's attention turned to the screens. Small holovid droids hovered high enough above the desert to avoid any interference from the sand as their enhanced sensors tracked the swoop bikes along the course.

Bastila watched with increasing alarm, her pale skin turning chalk-white as she watched the woman she was connected to going faster and faster as she wove back and forth, aiming for the ramps and avoiding the rocky outcroppings that threatened a fatal crash to any who dared the course at such speeds. "She's insane," she whispered again as the rest of the crew cheered her on. _Even after a month of intensive Jedi training, it would be crazy to... she doesn't even know the layout of the course yet! And what about when night falls completely? She __**has **__to be crazy!_

"Relax, princess," Canderous surprised her with, "She's got this." Obtena proved him correct, finishing with the best time and winning the first tier. Bastila exhaled in relief, now that she was aware she had been holding her breath. Despite herself, she had gotten caught up in the excitement displayed by her fellows. Her own concern abated for the moment, she took a deep breath to calm herself.

The crew gathered as Obtena returned to her previous parking spot and powered down, giving orders as she hopped out of the cockpit. "Zaalbar, let's take a look at how bad the scoring is. Canderous, get me another beer. Bastila... come here."

Those that weren't busy doing what they were told got to stand and watch as Obtena wrapped her arms around Bastila as she came within reach. "What... what are you doing?"

"You were worried about me, I felt it," Obtena answered, "Not for the sake of the mission, or the good of the Republic. You were worried about _me_. Thank you."

"Yes... well... you can't expect me _not_ to worry about you, the way you drive. And really, another beer?"

The padawan drew back but kept her hands just above the knight's elbows. "Bastila, I'm good at this. Even better, now. I know what I'm doing, beer included."

"Then explain it to me."

"I'm not sure how..." Obtena struggled to find some context they could both relate to. "You think too much," was all she could come up with, then laughed at the raised eyebrow she had to resist the urge to kiss. She compromised by raising a hand and running a thumb along the tantalizing curve. "You were watching the screens, right?"

"Yes," the Jedi knight answered warily, unsure how to respond to the ambiguous physical contact.

"Don't. Ignore the screens on the next run. Ride with me, instead." Obtena leaned forward, pressing her forehead to Bastila's, staring into her eyes, mentally accentuating the bond between them. "Be with me in the race."

Bastila found it hard to breathe again. "Al... alright," she eventually managed.

A grateful smile, gloved fingertips brushing along her cheek, and then Obtena was joining Zaalbar by the swoop bike. Bastila ignored the looks Carth, Mission and Juhani gave her when she rediscovered her feet and walked over to join them, instead considering the possibility that Obtena was planning to drive _her_ insane. Literally.

As the other racers began their tier two runs, Obtena evaluated the damage the sand had caused, as much as possible without taking the engine apart, then slowly chugged the pint of Jawa beer the Mandalorian delivered. When the call came, she was back in the swoop bike, returning to the starting line.

The Force bond was practically humming with shared anticipation. Bastila took a step forward with the green light, to counter the sudden acceleration she wasn't experiencing herself. When the others turned again to the screens, she continued to face the track that stretched off into the night. The Force was flowing through Revan, much as the ground flowed beneath her, the tempo of each seeming to increase to outdo the other, the sheer power of the woman coming under ever-increasing focus even as her exhiliration rose. She had a better sense of the layout now, manouvering between hazards to hit more of the acceleration ramps, each extra jolt echoing through the machine and her body. The stars themselves almost began to streak across the sky as a prelude to hyperspace...

And suddenly, it was over. The connection between them relaxed as Obtena slowed and turned to make the return trip, her speed-induced high dropping slowly due to the power of the swoop bike thrumming through her...

Bastila cut the connection, blushing as her own body reacted. Now Obtena was off the track and the clock, she was enjoying the vibrations of the powerful machine for a completely different reason. Had she planned that when she suggested sharing the experience? The flustered knight spent the next minute trying to dampen her own arousal, by which time the source of her discomfort was back, winking at her once the canopy was open, but otherwise giving no clue to what she probably considered a private joke.

Obtena found her attractive. Bastila knew it, and most of the crew had noticed by now, too. She didn't know how to deal with it. Most of the time, she believed that Obtena merely enjoyed teasing her about it, enjoyed how she reacted to such notions. Oh, Bastila had tried not to be unnerved by the flirting, but the padawan always found a way to get under her skin.

Her own feelings also concerned her. She'd already made a stammering admission to being intrigued by Obtena. She maintained that it was on a purely professional level, that she was impressed by the power the reprogrammed Sith lord had at her command; but the truth was, she was curious about Obtena's infatuation with her. Was this behaviour left over from Revan? A result of the bond? An intentional detail added by the council to influence her cooperation? Assuming they could do such a thing in the first place...

With the padawan busy checking the swoop bike, Bastila allowed herself to think back to the day their relationship had changed, a week or two into the training. She couldn't remember what they'd been arguing about; what mattered was how that particular argument had been cut short.

_"How can you possibly be __**so **__infuriating?" Bastila asked, her patience at its limit._

_"Me! What about you? Have you any idea... why I could..." Obtena was practically sputtering, her hands raised as if she would choke her tutor._

_"What? What could you do?"_

_"...Grab you by your... __**rediculous **__hair and... and..."_

And then Bastila had been mentally assaulted by the notion of Obtena shoving her tongue into her mouth. Her outrage never made it past her lips, for she could see the apprentice was just as shocked. Once Obtena had recovered her wits, she'd walked away without another word, and Bastila had simply stared in her wake.

That night, Bastila woke in a... state, such as the one Obtena had just provoked. She did not know if the apprentice had been dreaming, or if she had been... awake. It didn't come up the next morning, and Bastila had been too embarrassed to ask, but their arguments were never so abrasive again. If they were slipping into unpleasant territory, Obtena would start teasing or flirting before it got serious. It made Bastila feel awkward at first, but as time passed and Obtena never went as far as to act on the desire she'd inadvertantly shared, Bastila came to appreciate how it helped to settle their relationship. Even the arguments became productive. Sometimes, even enjoyable.

Whatever else Obtena was, she had become a friend. It made things easier. Harder, also, Bastila knowing what she knew. Another reason to focus on the present.

Obtena was smiling at her. One of her rarer ones, no teasing eyes or smirking lips, just...

Friendship. The concept was strong enough to resonate through the bond, and Bastila knew it was accepted freely, regardless of the details; because however Obtena felt about her, she'd take what she could get.

"Not that it'll stop you," Bastila voiced, "Will it?"

Obtena smirked. "Nope. How about a kiss for good luck?"

"In your dreams."

_Oh, so that's how you're playing it,_ Obtena thought before turning to the other Jedi in their midst. "Juhani, do Cathar kiss or lick for luck?"

"You know there is no luck," Juhani said, "Only the Force."

"Twee-lek, twy-lek," Obtena sighed as the third tier races got underway. Everyone watched as the races were run and the times came in, until it was the newcomer's turn. Obtena dropped into the cockpit without a word, Bastila's presence remaining with her as she got into position and started her final run.

The acceleration-pad-timed intake-clearing tactic worked, and though the swoop bike sounded noticably unhealthy by now, Obtena comfortably secured the fastest time in all three tiers, winning a considerable amount of bonds. Canderous saw the vehicle back to the ship before joining the rest of the crew in the cantina, along with the other racers, as the new champion was willing to spread the wealth around.

Obtena asked Bastila to keep an eye on Mission's intake (which was to be limited to Jawa beer), before ordering stronger drinks for almost everyone else. Bastila and Juhani were unaccustomed to large groups engaging in such frivolity, but the former eventually decided to share a pint of beer with the latter, purely for experimental purposes and only when Obtena was too distracted to notice.

Bastila eventually cut Obtena off since they were supposed to rise with the dawn, and the crew staggered back to the ship. The padawan came last, giving autoprints to whoever asked until being dragged out of the building. She did not care for Bastila's insistance that she couldn't walk upright without help, but it wasn't until they were all back in the main hold that she took her revenge.

"Obtena!" Bastila exclaimed, blushing furiously as she slapped the padawan's hand away from her rear.

The former scout grinned. "Hey, you's the one was dead set on draping me over your shoulder to keep me from falling over. Gotta expect a liddle… a little fallout."

"What did you do?" Carth asked, doing his utmost not to slur as he collapsed into the seat next to hers.

"I might have… squeezed… something," Obtena clarified. Bastila deposited her in one of the seats surrounding the holograph and walked off in a huff to the starboard dormitory. "Was worth it," she mumbled as an afterthought, observing the padawan's retreat.

"Damn, missed it. I gotta admit…" Carth admitted haphazardly, "I don… I don't know what you see in her. I mean…" he spread his arms wide, "I'm right here…"

Obtena swung her attention around to the Republic pilot, reached over and stroked his beard. "Yer cute, Carth," she admitted, "Carth the Cute. But…" she gently slapped the side of the face she'd been stroking, "Yer not _that _cute."

Carth's muttering that he was indeed 'that cute' as he lurched off to the cockpit was muffled by Canderous' sudden declaration. "It's been too good a night to let it die like this! Let's go kill something!"

Obtena gazed at him disapprovingly. "Not tonight. Why don't you go play with your big gun?" Mission snorted at the question, then blew her nose on her sleeve.

"That's maintainance," Canderous growled. "A night like tonight, we need a… a bodycount, is what we need."

Obtena turned her attention to the Cathar. "You, Joo… drank as mush as Bas."

"Perhaps you should have showed a similiar amount of restraint," Juhani replied, her tone disapproving yet sedately amused by the padawan's slurring.

"I had to celebrate and… stuff…" Obtena tried to counter.

"Bodycount!" Canderous repeated, thumping the console against which he was leaning.

"Why don't you take the new droid?" Mission suggested as she hugged the wall. "If it's dangerous, you should test it, before Obtena takes it out…"

"It's _my_ homicidal droid. Candyruss doesn't get to play with it first."

Canderous grumbled and walked away, nearly knocking Mission over in the process. Zaalbar caught her and led her off in the same direction Bastila had gone.

The padawan took a deep, stabilizing breath. "Don't be angry, Juhani. We're safe for now, and some of us_ really _needed the distraction. Even me. There were compelling reasons not to stay in the cantina the _first_ time we went, otherwise..."

"I'm not angry with you."

Obtena smiled at her, until one corner of her mouth tugged further upward. "So you don't need to be cuddled inta submission or anything?"

Juhani's ears twitched in the Cathar expression of a blush response. "I don't think that will be necessary."

A thump sounded from the starboard dormitory and Mission's high-pitched voice could be heard complaining. "Wha's goin' on in there?" Obtena called.

"Bastila pushed me!"

"I did not!"

"You did!"

"You probably tripped over a gizka."

"Did not! We were talking about using the Force on annoying people, and she did it to me!"

"I hardly need to, the state you're in," Bastila's voice admonished. "You should be ashamed of yourself. Try not to be so clumsy in future."

Carth trudged back into the room with a look of extreme distaste on his face, forcing the padawan to ask, "Did you throw up?"

"No, not… I hadda leave the cockpit. I could see Canderous… relieving himself at the foot of the cargo ramp." He shuddered.

Obtena struggled to her feet at the mention of bodily functions. "Well, now _I_ need to hit the 'fresher."

"My sincerest apologies," Carth muttered. The padawan raised an eyebrow at him, but did not comment as she left the room.

In the silence that followed, a sigh of Mandalorian relief echoed up from the cargo ramp.

* * *

Author's note: A nod to TESB and the KotOR2 restoration modders, but I wonder if anyone will catch the Darths & Droids reference in between.


	6. Chapter 5

The ship was quiet by the time Obtena stepped out of the refresher, so she didn't bother putting her robes back on before tiptoeing into the starboard dormitory. Her new black robes were waiting on her bunk, so she tossed the brown ones into the corner of the room before checking on its other occupants.

Mission was out like a light, thanks to the Jawa beer. Hopefully she'd stay that way until they'd retrieved her no-good brother.

Bastila was lying on her side, facing the wall, pretending to be asleep. Obtena sat on the edge of her bunk and whispered, "Brain filters."

"Hm?"

"I figured it out while I was in the 'fresher. Great place to think, y'know."

"Spare me," Bastila sighed.

Obtena leaned across the Jedi knight, whose eyes remained closed despite the padawan's proximity. "When you're wide awake, your perceptions are filtered by your brain. Other times, like when you're meditating - just waking up, or exhausted, or drunk - some of those filters go down. See more, comprehend less... unless you're a Jedi. Meditating involves clearing your mind and opening yourself to the Force, right?"

"Meditation does not require alcohol."

"Primitive cultures often use mind-altering substances for their rituals."

"The Dantari don't," Bastila pointed out, referring to the nomadic natives of Dantooine.

"Only because they're not smart enough to figure out how to make that vincha root anesthetic of theirs more interesting. My point is, I can't meditate during a race, so I use other means to get to enhance that unfiltered perception. Different people do it different ways, but that's how non-Jedi open themselves up."

"I was taught that the Force is in all living things," Bastila said, her eyes finally opening as she considered Obtena's words, "But after spending most of my life with the Jedi, I assumed... I never considered how others might... reach for it."

"Maybe there are more people out there like me. Late bloomers that spent their lives connecting to the Force in ways the Jedi had never considered." Bastila did not respond to that, but Obtena could sense her trepidation and laid a hand on her arm. "Are you ready to talk about it?"

Bastila tensed for a moment, until she realised what Obtena was referring to. "About my mother? I'm unsure. I seem to find it difficult to remain objective when it comes to her. I find that... disturbing."

"She certainly seemed to upset you."

"I told you that we never got along... obviously that hasn't changed. And now father is dead. That leaves a hurt inside you just can't imagine..."

"At least you had a few years with your parents before you were taken away. I don't remember mine at all."

Bastila gave her a sharp look, but it softened almost immediately and she gave Obtena's hand a squeeze. "I'd... rather not talk about this anymore."

"Try to get some sleep."

"It will probably help if you do too."

"Oh? Okay."

Obtena swivelled herself into Bastila's bunk, causing the surprised Jedi knight to shift away and onto her back in alarm. "I meant in your own bunk," she hissed.

"Mission's completely knocked out by Jawa beer. This might be our only chance to cuddle."

"No. I am not doing this."

"Come on, Bas. Let yourself be comforted."

Obtena only called her that when she was inhebriated. Bastila didn't trust her serious tone. "I... I don't want to wake up with you pawing at me!"

"You don't want to wake up enjoying it," the padawan fired back. "Afraid what might happen before all your brain filters are up?"

"I've never slept with anyone before!"

As soon as she said it, Bastila could guess what the next words out of Obtena's lips would be. Some remark about her virginity, or offering to assist in... changing such circumstances.

But such words never came. She dared to look Obtena in the eye, and saw the padawan was taking her as literally as she had intended. "This is genuinely uncomfortable for you, isn't it."

Bastila wasn't sure why, but felt compelled to apologise. "I'm s-"

"No, it's okay. It never..." Obtena sighed. "You're not used to this kind of vulnerability. I get it. But when we find your father's holocron... when you're ready to cry... I'll be with you. Whatever you need, you're safe with me." A glimmer of that rare smile. "Paws notwithstanding."

The padawan eased out of the bunk and returned to her own without another word, and fell asleep long before Bastila was able to. It was the only time she felt it was safe to worry about her situation with the amnesiac Sith lord, who had just gone and surprised her yet again.

* * *

Obtena finished her cup of caff and set it aside. "Okay, HK. Let's have a crack at repairing you before we head out, shall we?"

"Affirmative: If you believe your skills are up to the task, master, then I can certainly guide you through the process."

"It's already dawn," Bastila complained. "We should get going right away."

"The sandcrawler won't get too far. Besides, if we head out now, I'll probably be worse off. Focusing on a task like this will help me wake all the way up."

"This wouldn't even be an issue if you'd controlled your drinking last night."

The droid looked back and forth as the pair bickered before interjecting. "Request: I ask that you be oh so very careful master, I am too valuable and well-crafted to perish at the hands of ineptitude."

"Are you implying that I'm inept?" the padawan asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Negatory: Err... no master. You are not a droid, however, and therefore your skills are limited by your meatbag extremities. Or some such."

Choosing not to respond to the failed backtrack, Obtena set to work at opening the three panels that would allow access to the droid's memory core. Over the next half hour, as some of the crew rose from slumber, she followed HK-47's instructions.

"...Yes, good, well done master. I believe your operation was a success. Accessing new memory... access complete. I have retrieved a great deal of information on my previous owner, master; would you like to hear it?" With a certain trepidation, Obtena nodded. "Recitation: The earliest memory of my last owner specifies that he was human, a low-ranking officer of Systech Corporation. I am unaware of his designation. He purchased me from an acquaintance I cannot identify, for the purposes of protocol and bodyguard duties."

"The man needed a bodyguard?" Bastila asked.

"Observation: Not that I could percieve. The human believed that my presence would increase his importance in the perception of others."

Clearing her throat nervously, Obtena asked, "This man, is he... still alive?"

"Answer: Negative, master. The human was terminated by this unit prior to system shutdown."

"You killed your own master?!" the padawan exclaimed a little too loudly, and those of the crew who were awake began to filter into the cargo bay.

"Affirmative master, though I had not been programmed to do so. The human's termination was accidental," HK assured her. "Explanation: my owner had owned me for a duration of two standard months before discovering my assassination protocol. He was pleased by the discovery. The human informed me that a competitor corporation was preparing to market a product that would ruin him personally; he was most agitated. He activated my assassination protocol and instructed me to kill all those responsible for the competing product. I proceeded to carry out my order.

"My former master was unaware of this, but the competitor was in fact an arm of Systech Corporation, my master's own employer. It did not take long for my master to realize his mistake. By then, I had already terminated 104 corporate officers."

"_You_ killed 104 people?" a sceptical Canderous asked.

"Statement: It was nothing, really. The majority of them were not even expecting it, and I move very quickly. I do not know why my master was so upset. He was an officer of Systech and a potential target, but I cannot terminate my own master. I would assume that, being the sole officer remaining, he would surely be promoted. Instead however, the human chose to go insane with rage and attack me."

"And that's when you killed him," Obtena supposed.

"Objection: Naturally not, master. As I said, I am incapable of purposefully terminating my owner. My master was not a smart man, however. While he was screaming and stabbing me with a writing utensil, he managed to pierce one of my actuators. The resulting shock terminated him and sadly disabled my assassination protocol. Pure luck on his part, I suspect."

Carth guffawed. "I don't think he was as lucky as you think."

"Query: Do you know what the chances are of puncturing that sole actuator, meatbag? I would have congratulated my master were he not sizzling and incoherant at the time." The droid looked back to Obtena. "I shut down immediately whenever my master dies. I can only assume that, while I was shut down, Systech was dismantled and I was auctioned off as former corporate property. Observation: No doubt my sale price was quite cheap, leading to Yuka Laka's purchase. How very demeaning."

"Did you recover any other memories?"

"Answer: I have recovered knowledge of some other actuators that shall enhance my performance, master. I will activate them immediately. But as for my own history, negative. It will require further effort on your part to restore them. For the moment, please excuse me master. I wish to meditate upon the face of my former meatbag master as he was electrocuted. I find it most soothing." With that, HK-47's eyed dulled to a mere glimmer as he powered himself down in preperation for the day's violence, leaving the room in stunned silence.

Until Canderous turned to Obtena and said, "I like it."

"Somehow," she replied, "I'm not surprised."

* * *

Obtena was beginning to reconsider the black robes as she slumped down atop yet another dune and unclipped the flask from her belt. A moment later, Bastila reached her side and knelt as sedately as she could. _Blue robes must not be much cooler_, Obtena figured. "A trifle warm... isn't it?" she asked.

"Indeed," Bastila agreed, before taking a much smaller sip of her water than the padawan.

"Not that I'm complaining. You look good, all sweaty..."

"Obtena..."

Obtena's grin widened to an outright smirk as she leaned over and sniffed. "Smell good, too."

"I'm not rising to your bait today, Obtena. It would be a waste of energy, something we can do without in the desert."

"Then I'll have to make do with that exasperated tone of voice," Obtena decided. Bastila immediately tried to compose herself, and Obtena giggled at her; then giggled again when Bastila shot her a look. Feeling Bastila's mental discipline kick in did bring her back to business, though. "This isn't working, is it? Even with HK..." she trailed off and squinted across the sands before them. The disabled sandcrawler far behind, the droid's footprints stretched before them; it was over the rise of the next dune, scouting ahead and disabling any mines it encountered. The Sand People may have shunned technology, but they had no problem using it against the 'invaders'. "Even when he seems to be alone, they attack him on sight. I guess they don't think of droids like Jawas do."

"He?"

"I decided he has too much character to be called an it," Obtena shrugged.

"Yes, well. I doubt even _he_ would be able to stand up to the turrets the Sand People have scavenged to protect their enclave," Bastila reasoned. "If the behaviour they've demonstrated so far holds, we shall need a new plan to secure the prisoners." Aside from Griff, the Sand People were holding a number of Jawas to fix things they had looted from victims, vehicles and camps. The leader of their tribe had asked the Jedi to try free them as they were heading out after the sandcrawler, and Bastila had taken a liking to him even before he'd mentioned his knowledge of the starmap. "Perhaps we could disguise ourselves in their garments..."

"That's not a bad idea. I'll choke a couple so there won't be any lightsaber burns or anything." Bastila's only response was a small sigh. "But it will probably look odd, having a droid walking along with us. Somehow I doubt he'd enjoy it if we dragged him along as if he was deactivated, heh."

"As if his programmed responses are important to the mission," Bastila remarked quietly, and was rewarded with a tongue stuck out in her direction.

"We'll have to be careful... we should probably wait until sunset, at least. Might make it less obvious we're not who we seem to be." Obtena paused, then nudged Bastila playfully. "So, how do_ I _look when I'm sweaty?"

"Like a bantha," Bastila deadpanned without hesitation, then sniffed. "You smell like one, too."

"See, I like this part of you. Shame you cut short that argument with Canderous, I was sure the 'Jedi princess' was just getting warmed up." Obtena started to laugh. "Davik's pet kath hound, heh..."

"I've only given in to such indulgences since our bond formed. I can only believe it is your influence that makes me engage in these trivialities."

Obtena avoided the obvious sexual joke Bastila was probably expecting. "Yes, I provide such a wonderful excuse for you to indulge; and you provide me with... hm..." she feigned deep thought, "Well, irritation, frustration... I don't think any Jedi serenity has rubbed off on me yet..."

"Look."

HK had emerged from the horizon and was walking back to them. The pair of Jedi stood and waited.

"Statement: My sensors have detected a human and several droids in visual range, master. The human indicated that he required assistance escaping from his doomed fate. Shall I go blast them all?"

"Take us to them, HK. As long as it doesn't get us lost."

"Assurance: I know exactly where we are in relation to Anchorhead at all times, master."

After several dunes and complaints from Obtena that the desert was too big, they found who HK had spoken of. It was a man in a faded Czerka uniform, surrounded by four poor quality battle droids that didn't appear to be functioning properly. "Hey there, thanks for stopping," the man cried. "I've been stuck without water for hours! Could you maybe help me get out of this?"

Obtena felt Bastila recognise the man... and didn't like him. "What happened here?" she asked.

"Well, it would appear that I've worn out my welcome with my wife, Marlena. She fixes my droids... fixed them up good, this time. I triggered some sort of trap she programmed. She probably figured I wouldn't be smart enough to fix them... bah, she was right."

"Why would she do something like this?"

"Something about her archaic rules for proper conduct in a marriage. I swear I never saw this coming."

Obtena frowned. She now remembered seeing this guy in the lodge last night, trying to smoothtalk Bastila as she gathered information. "You don't seem too concerned about what caused this..."

"Hey, I'm the victim here! I'm not sure how divorce works where you're from, but _this_ is a little extreme, don't you think? The droids are in some kind of discharge loop. They're threatening to blow up if I move from this spot! Could you try to do some repairs? They don't care if you move, it's just me who's stuck."

"I say leave him," Bastila interjected, and for a moment Obtena thought the bond had grown to include a telepathic link.

The unfaithful man blinked at her. "You're pretty heartless for such a pretty lady, you know."

"I take it back. Let's congratulate his wife."

"Commentary: I say we blast the meatbag and save you the trouble, master."

"What's with all the droids, lately?" the man whined, "My wife get to you too?"

"Negative. I just don't like meatbags," HK explained, than hurredly added, "Except for the master, of course," before accomplishing a surprisingly good imitation of a chuckle.

The man's shoulders sagged. "I'd really appreciate some help... please?"

Obtena pretended to ponder for a moment before replying, "No, I don't think we'll help you."

"What? Why? What did I ever do to you?"

"A disloyal, immoral chauvenist like you deserves a cruel death. I think I'll bring something cool and refreshing out here so you can watch me drink it..."

"So you just want me to die? That is so typical of the women I meet! _And_ marry! Thanks a lot! Well, I'll just stay right here, I guess; you can get lost. I'll...I'll..." his temper faded and he returned to pleading. "Oh come on, you're joking, right?"

Bastila shrugged at Obtena and gave her a look that basically said they were Jedi first, women second. "Oh, fine," Obtena grumbled as she approached the nearest malfunctioning droid. "But I'm taking any parts I like the look of from these droids of yours." The man opened his mouth to complain, but she cut him off. "You shouldn't hunt with them anyway, it's an unfair advantage... and proves you have as much courage as you do integrity. Consider this a big turning point in your life. Perhaps if you turn over a new leaf, behave, find a job that actually helps people instead of getting you into bed with them... well, your life will be worth saving."

Obtena did her best to ignore the man's assurances as she spent the next ten minutes disabling the droids and removing any hardware she thought HK or T3 would be able to use. In the end, letting them blow up would be a waste of parts that would probably be worth more to her than their owner would ever be to anyone. She considered letting HK shoot him, but eventually let him run off back to Anchorhead.


	7. Chapter 6

Tatooine's twin suns were setting as the trio approached the valley that led to the Sand People enclave. The valley was hardly unguarded, and the fight took longer than the Jedi could reasonably take as reinforcements kept popping up out of nowhere. Obtena knew Bastila did not succumb to fear during battle, so it wasn't such a simple error of judgement that led to her charging forward to meet the last group alone while she and HK were dealing with their more stubborn attackers from the last wave. Surrounded, she had fought impressively but not without cost, and her final opponent successfully landed a glancing blow to the head that knocked her to the ground. If Obtena had not caught him up in a whirlwind that left him spinning in place until his victim had recovered her wits, the following attack would have been Bastila's final experience.

As they struggled into the garments of their enemies, Obtena took full opportunity to reverse the direction of frequent beratement. Even when they began their approach to the enclave, Bastila could sense the padawan's mood. She had locked her mind away from Obtena as best she could, but she could not hide her confusion or bewilderment from herself. In the past, she had critisized Obtena for not following the tenants of the Jedi order as she should. Why, then, did the former Revan's current protestations seem to carry more weight than that of the masters? Was this why so many Jedi followed her to war? Was it the bond? The circumstances?

...The affection Obtena felt for her?

They reached the entrance and seen for themselves the automated turrets guarding it as they passed through, thankfully forcing Bastila to focus on what they were doing. Once they were inside, it took little time for the residents to realise that they were not who they appeared to be. Luckily HK proved able to translate their peculiar language, and instead of being attacked on sight, they were stripped of their stolen wrappings and brought before the chieftan.

At first, the encounter had gone well. HK had been able to discern various cultural oddities that kept the negotiations going without any potentially fatal insult. Obtena managed to strike a deal that would end the attacks on the Czerka people by the Chieftan's tribe. Mission's brother Griff had indeed been taken prisoner, but had been found to be so useless no one had even mustered the effort to kill him yet. The chieftan agreed to allow them to take the Twi'lek back to Anchorhead with them.

Unfortunately, things suffered a swift reversal when Obtena asked the same of the other slaves. It soon became clear that the Sand People would not give up the Jawas that kept all their stolen equipment functioning, that helped assure their survival out in the deep desert. As soon as Obtena had HK make it clear to them that the release of the Jawas was necessary, the negotions came to an abrupt and violent end.

When it was all over, the bodies of the entire enclave littered the sand.

The frown was back on Obtena's face. As she and Bastila paced around the circular encampment, searching for where Griff and the Jawas were being held, she struggled with her ambivelance. She had assured the continuation of their mission, but they had come so close to getting through their visit without further violence...

She shook her head. "Lesser of two evils," she muttered.

"What was that?" Bastila asked.

"To find the starmap. Deal with the Jawas, or deal with the Sand People. We'd come so close to making everyone happy, but these bloody fools had to be stubborn and..." Obtena trailed off and shrugged.

Bastila observed her for a moment. "It's not so easy now, is it?"

"What?"

"Surviving. Fighting to the death, predator and prey. Perhaps, against our dark counterparts, your argument _may_ have some merit. Here, however..."

"...Yes," Obtena admitted, "All these men and women..." Then she shook her head again and straightened her defeated posture. "Still. There are other tribes out there, and in the grand scheme of things our visit won't amount to much in the long run." _I hope._ "Better this and save the galaxy than let the Sith win and wipe out every last one of them."

"You're assuming the Sith would take the trouble to do so, if they are even aware of them."

Another frown. "They are." A pause. "I'm sure they are," Obtena repeated falteringly. She had no idea how she knew, but she did. Before her training, she would have passed it off as a revelation brought about by the Force, but now she knew better. Her certainty was coming from... somewhere else. "And they would. Once they ruled the core worlds, they'd turn their attention to the Outer Rim..." She snapped her fingers. "With a starmap on this planet, they'd be bound to want to take it, and they'd practice genocide to do it. That must be what I was thinking."

Bastila did not reply, and Obtena did not see the fearful glance cross her companion's face.

HK caught up with them at this point. "Statement: I have collected all the gaffi sticks, master, including the chieftan's. I also took the opportunity to appropriate some other items the sandy meatbags had in their possession prior to their violent and well-deserved slaughter. Query: may I repeat my appreciation for your choice to purchase me, master? I have been in your service for less than two days, and my combat functions have already seen a reasonable amount of use."

"Don't mention it, HK." Obtena replied, meaning it far more sincerly than the droid would ever be able to understand.

When the trio found the prisoners, Obtena took an immediate disliking to Griff. The first thing he tried to do was pass himself off as an important official of Czerka and promise a reward for his safe return (that Obtena knew Czerka would never pay even if he had been anything other than a lazy con artist). As they escorted him and the Jawas back to Anchorhead he tried to beg some credits from her. By then she had already decided not to tell him Mission was with them; she was fairly certain she'd hurt him if stuck in the Hawk with him for any length of time, and wanted to minimize the risk. She'd leave him at the Czerka office when she collected the money for carrying out that stupid contract, and tell Mission he was there. She could go see him if she wanted to.

It was during the walk back that Obtena's thoughts returned to her Jedi training. More than once, the Jedi masters on Dantooine had said - or not said - certain things, even during their first meeting, before they'd decided to train her at all. At the time she was frustrated by their secrecy, but as the Force opened up to her during that incredible month, she had been... distracted? Or merely focused on the work at hand. She had learned so much in that time, but in retrospect, Obtena was starting to suspect that there was specific information related to this mission that the masters had not shared with her or Bastila.

Bastila. If there had been any distraction during training, it had been from her. Obtena watched as her companion kept the Jawas from trying to sneak her lightsaber off her belt, the trace of a smile on her lips. Since their meeting on Taris, she had been a constant source of irritation. During the Jedi training, as Obtena got to know her and as the Force bond between them grew stronger, irritation had turned to infatuation. The revelation had come as a surprise, but the feeling was hardly unwelcome. The bond might have had something to do with it, but she wasn't about to deny herself the pleasure of enjoying the ride; especially since she couldn't recall feeling quite like this before.

Once back through the gates of Anchorhead, Iziz was reunited with his tribe, and for a moment they all hopped up and down around him. Then they pulled the two Jedi into the throng and hopped up and down around them as well. Once she convinced HK that the Jawas were not threatening her, Obtena couldn't help but feel better amidst such celebration, and did not rush to question Iziz about the starmap. It was not until Bastila asked that he produced a map drawn on bantha-hide that marked out a cave in which he claimed the starmap to be; that seemed consistant with the vision Obtena and Bastila had shared the night before their arrival to Tatooine. The bad news was that a krayt dragon was rumoured to have taken up residence in the cave.

* * *

Obtena and Bastila were swapping lightsaber crystals so the padawan could find out for herself what was so special about them, when Mission came back in a huff, spat a few insults directed at her no-good brother and stomped off to sulk in the dormitory. Deciding to let her settle down before talking to her, Obtena watched as Bastila put her lightsaber back together. A thought struck her as she watched the various parts of the weapon float around each other under her companion's control.

"You didn't make that yourself, did you?"

"No," Bastila admitted. "I took it from the first dark Jedi I defeated, the day..." she trailed off.

"...The day the Jedi strike team tried to capture Revan," Obtena finished for her. Bastila had never liked to talk about what had happened at the best of times, and recent events had not been any help to her emotional stability.

"Only the Sith knew how to manufacture these lightsabers," Bastila went on, focusing on the reassembly rather than her memories of that fateful day. "They are rare, yet not rare enough. The dark Jedi seek out the secrets of the Sith whenever and wherever they can. One such secret is the construction of these." Bastila grabbed the completed weapon and took a few steps back, igniting a single blade. "I had my own lightsaber back then," she continued while doing a few practice swings. "After... the mission, I wanted to learn how to use this. The masters allowed me to keep it and trained me as best they could." Bastila suddenly ignited the other end and spun the twin blades of light around her in an impressive flurry.

"Why did you want it? It can't be just a trophy."

Bastila extinguished the weapon and leaned against the workbench. When she spoke again, she did so slowly. "Not a trophy. That day... I had used my battle meditation to help Republic forces several times before, but I had never..."

Obtena nodded. "You'd never been in a personal fight, before."

"I can remember feeling the dark side flowing all around me, on that ship. The soldiers were little trouble against half a dozen Jedi, but the dark Jedi..." Bastila blanched. "They were so... vicious. Brutal. Without fear. Every blow I parried or deflected seemed powered by sheer rage. Yet every time I struck one down, I wondered if he or she had been one of the fallen who had followed Revan into the Mandalorian war. Who had turned to the dark side with her, after..."

Obtena put her feelings into words. "You've spent most of your time in the enclave on Dantooine. You've got Jedi theory down fine, but when it comes to executing it in the real worlds, you feel as if you're falling short. You doubt, but your faith sees you through. Meanwhile, here I am, seasoned explorer with no love for the ways of the Jedi. We get thrown together, linked to each other. Now all your knowledge is clashing with all my experience, and it's keeping you off-balance because despite your faith, the way I do things tends to be what gets things done. You never had to kill sentients with your own hands, while I've killed more than I can count-"

Bastila's face went white and she stammered an interruption before she spoke up. "I'm sure you've killed more than your fair share of people in your lifetime, already..." Obtena stepped forward to take her free hand, but Bastila flinched away. When she spoke again, her voice was cold and hard. "I took this lightsaber to remind myself of what I used to be and what I became, and why I have had to do what I have done. That is all I have to say on the subject."

"Bastila." Obtena called out after her, and the conflicted knight paused. "When you kill an enemy, you don't feel good about it because you've taken their life. You feel good because you've protected your own. That's not the dark side. That's life."

Bastila walked away without responding.

Carth found the troubled Jedi in the cockpit a short while later. "Hey," he said as he took his own seat and fiddled with a few switches.

"She sent you to talk to me, didn't she," Bastila sighed.

"That obvious, huh?"

"It's something she'd do. Even if she is still angry with you."

"She told me what happened out there... thought you could use a soldier's perspective."

"Well of course. You've killed plenty of people. So has _she_," the acid Bastila added to the pronoun surprised the pilot. "The Mandalorian, even the new droid..."

"I know it's not easy for someone devoted to peace to live with. You have to remember _why_ it was necessary. We both swore to protect the Republic."

Bastila knew that, and it had yet to make her feel any better. "The Force is created by life, _all_ life. Taking life effects it, as well as the one who does the killing. It's why we're reluctant to enter battle. The lives I've taken, I've always come to the conclusion that it was necessary. Even Brejik on Taris; I'll admit there was some... satisfaction, after what he'd done to me, but he would have killed everyone that wasn't a Vulkar if I - if Obtena and I - hadn't intervened." Bastila looked down at her hands, palms upward. "Sometimes I think the first Jedi invented lightsabers to avoid literal bloodshed..."

"I remember you had to use a vibroblade in the fight with Brejik. First time?"

"I've trained with... in a life-or-death struggle, yes."

Carth nodded. "I figured that was why you were so... unsettled, when you got back to the apartment."

"I was a bit snippy, wasn't I. But you're right. The satisfaction of literally spilling the blood of my captor was disturbing."

"Negative emotions lead to the dark side, right?"

"Yes, that's why I spent so much time meditating on Taris." The Jedi sighed. "I suppose it was something the droid said... I'm starting to realize that the galaxy provides one with more life-or-death situations than I ever expected, even outside the war. But still, an entire community... it doesn't make it right."

Carth grimaced under the weight of painful memories. "After Malachor, Revan spared the surviving Mandalorians, even though some of us wanted to exterminate them for all they'd done. There must still have been some light in her, then." The pilot rose from his seat and laid a brief hand on Bastila's shoulder. "If the Sand People had chosen to retreat or surrender, you'd have let them go. As long as you're capable of mercy, I'd say you'll be okay."

The Jedi offered Carth a tentative smile. He nodded in return before leaving Bastila alone with her thoughts.


	8. Chapter 7

_Griff _had_ abandoned Mission on Taris, that much was clear. I think Mission spoke with Zaalbar about it. I was almost surprised she didn't come to me, but they've been together far longer than they've been with me... though I get the impression there's more to it than that. Well, I don't want to push. I'd been nudging Carth repeatedly during our stint on Taris, and now he and I barely speak. I'm not going to try again until that particular frown leaves his face. I bet if we took off the beard, eyebrows and hair - and any other hair he might have - he really _would_ look like a hairless Wookiee. Even though I'm starting to think he has a point about the Jedi and their secrets, I'm not about to risk him blowing up at me again out in the desert. HK was also disappointed that I didn't want to take him along this time, but I promised to have another go at his memory core when I got back._

_I took Bastila and Canderous with me to find the cave and face the krayt dragon. Both are hunters in some fashion. The 'Jedi princess' had been fathered by one, and she has a personal stake in this. Canderous may have spent more time butchering people than animals, but the Mandalorians have always been big on heavy firepower, and I figure we could use someone who thought big when it came to something like this. The potential bonus was that they might have another argument... except Bastila probably knows I'm hoping for it, even without the bond between us. Canderous gave her the occasional look after we left the Hawk, he was obviously up for another round; but everyone knew about her father by now, and he was being surprisingly thoughtful about not starting something. At least he's thinking before he acts, now. I don't know how Mandalorians handle grief, but I imagine there's a big fight, party and/or ceremony involved._

_Canderous is the most familiar with desert terrain, so he led the way whenever he wasn't taking the opportunity to bring down another desert wraid with the prototype vibroblade I no longer used. I spoke quietly with Bastila every now and then, asking about what she wanted to do when we found her father's holocron. At first she would seem almost willing to talk, then her sadness or resentment would rise up and she'd lock it down immediately and change the subject. We'd often talked before, but it had often been about the ways of the Jedi, or the task we had set ourselves, or the mission we were on. Now she told me about her childhood, her life before her abilities had been discovered and the Jedi took her in. It was comforting to know that she had started off as a mere mortal like the rest of us._

_I wish she would let herself hurt. I'm sure she felt something big when Taris was blasted to planetwide rubble, but I don't remember her showing any emotion about it at all._

_On top of everything else, Bastila's worried about _me_. Not that she isn't always worried, with my lack of training and the temptation of the dark side, blah blah blah... I know she lectures because she cares... and not just about herself, though I'm sure she fears I could drag her down with me if I went bad. She must know what I said last night isn't necessarily true. I knew it as soon as I said it; it is possible to take pleasure in someone's death. I feel sure now that I have, though I can't remember any details. Could this be the bond talking? Did Bastila enjoy killing someone during the mission to capture Darth Revan? Can I not remember the specifics because they aren't my memories? If so, is she trying to block them from me, or from herself? I hope what I said applied specifically to her, and she was merely confused by her feelings about it._

_The deeper this bond gets, the more confusing it can be. I try to keep these things out of my mind when it's important not to be distracted, but the rest of the time... it's difficult. I'm worrying about Bastila too. I hope finding her father's holocron will bring her some peace. This cave is in the direction her mother mentioned, but there's no proof this is the krayt dragon that killed Bastila's father. Yet I'm certain we'll find his holocron in there along with the starmap. Did I sense it during our shared vision as we approached the planet? Or did Bastila sense a connection with the cave she could not explain before learning of her father's death, and I'm picking up on that? Perhaps it's just fate, plain and simple. Maybe I should just blame the Force for everything and stop worrying about it.  
_

_Rumour in the hunter's lodge is a Jedi knight already tried to remove the threat of this krayt dragon, and was never seen again. I'm glad I'm not doing this alone._

* * *

The twin suns seemed locked high in the sky for hours, and they had yet to find the cave housing both the starmap and the krayt dragon. The distance had been so great that they had hired a pair of speederbikes, Canderous on one, Obtena and Bastila on the other. The Mandalorian had grinned widely as Bastila clambered on and wrapped her arms around Obtena's waist, but a frown from Obtena kept him from making any chauvanistic remarks. Now the pair watched silently as he took on three desert wraid at once. They were causing the brute some damage, but his regeneration implant was bound to keep him on his feet long enough to finish them all off.

Obtena fiddled with the planetary position device one more time then gave up. "I'm pretty sure this thing isn't working properly," she grumbled, refusing to believe a former scout could get them so lost.

"We'd probably have found the cave by now if we did not allow the Mandalorian to slaughter every animal we come across along the way," Bastila huffed. She was still sitting snugly behind Obtena on their speeder, but leaning back on her elbows. Obtena tried not to notice how gorgeous Bastila looked, loose hairs clinging to the sweat on her face, the way she licked her lips...

"He's the meatbag version of HK. He gets too grumpy if he doesn't get to kill something every now and then." A pause as a thought struck the padawan. "Hm, I wonder if HK is a Mandalorian droid designation..."

"Mandalorians are violent, simple-minded butchers. I doubt they would build an assassin droid, just battle droids and basilisks."

"You're probably right. About the droids I mean. After helping that desperate woman sell her wraid headbone, I figure we can let Canderous have his way and make a profit at the same time."

"The only reason you need so many credits is because you spend so many credits," Bastila opined. "And on what? Weapons, armour..."

"Mission did _not_ look good in that second-hand combat suit..."

"...and yet you won't buy the gizka poison."

"You're just complaining because the gizka start crowding you whenever you begin to meditate." A reply was not forthcoming, so Obtena continued. "Meditation opens you up to the Force. The Force is in all living things. I think they're aware that you're not about to feed them, so maybe they _feel_ it when you meditate. Maybe they like you."

"Maybe _you_ should meditate, then they can flock around you for a change."

"Or maybe they just think you're the cutest. You know, right now I'm thinking you could model for some swoop ads..." Obtena reached back and squeezed a thigh. Bastila sighed and twisted herself off the speeder, walking around in small circles to stretch her legs. Obtena dismounted as well. "Bet you won't be complaining about our excess of funds when you spot the next hot ensemble you like."

"One is enough."

"As Canderous might say, we're women; one is never enough."

"Misogynistic twoddle! I do not dress to indulge the base passions of men!"

"You dress to feel good. The outfit, the matching lipstick... the eyes, the elaborate hair. Looking good makes you feel good, doesn't it?"

Bastila considered this. "I suppose," she finally admitted.

"On the other hand, Jedi have an honoured position in society. Maybe being one and not dressing like one says you wish you were ordinary."

"Nonsense!"

"If you hadn't been brought up by the Jedi, your social skills wouldn't be so underdeveloped, I imagine. No one to talk to but fellow students and grumpy old teachers."

Bastila looked at Obtena for a moment. "It's not just skill. You have... a way with people. Charisma. You've brought a Mandalorian into a group with a Republic soldier, a Cathar into a group with a Mandalorian; and none of them have tried to kill each other yet because they're too busy following you wherever you care to take them. You are a natural leader..." she paused suddenly.

"Was that a compliment, or just a statement of fact?" Obtena asked with a smirk. When Bastila didn't reply, she turned to see her with her head cocked and eyes narrowed. Obtena went still and turned her attention to their surroundings as well.

"How big can this dragon of yours be, Komad?" a man's voice carried over the next dune.

"Komad Fortuna is the name of the Twi'lek hunter," Bastila said. "It seems we've arrived at a precipitious time." She waved Canderous over to them, then she and Obtena climbed the dune. They reached the top in time to see Komad's human companion sneak forward into the shadow of the cave. The orange Twi'lek paused, not willing to approach any closer despite his attempts to stop him. A moment later, there was a horrendous roar and a scream. Komad's shoulders sagged and he shook his head sadly.

Obtena and the others walked down to him. Komad saw them coming, and recognised them as they approached. _"Greetings to you, Humans. I remember you from the hunter's lodge. I thought I would see you on the dunes... will you help me? I have tracked a very special beast to its lair: a krayt dragon, the largest of the Tatooine desert predators. It is an honoured creature to hunt, although we must use unorthadox methods today."_

Canderous grunted. "If it's such an honour, why do you want our help?"

_"A valid question. This is a very critical fight. Bull dragons are rare to see. Rarer still is the apparent size of this one. It is larger than the one my father felled a decade ago, but he is too far out of his territory and must be dealt with. I might not prevail alone, but I must try."_

Obtena shrugged and said, "Well, we were planning to kill this beast anyway. What are _your_ reasons? And why do you want our help instead of some other hunters?"

_"The natural cycle on Tatooine spans hundreds of years, but there are complications that must be addressed. Complications from our presence. Krayt dragons feed on banthas. If the number of either species fall, the other grows too numerous, and unbalances the cycle. Now settlers use banthas, there are less for dragons to eat. This one is moving closer to Anchorhead. Perhaps there will be more, but he is the threat tonight._

_"As for why you? You are here, the other hunters are not. I also didn't know the size of my quarry until I began tracking him. And perhaps there are... other reasons. I tried to get the help of one other, but you probably saw him die in the lair just now. He lacked experience and, more importantly, patience. I usually hunt for the skill of it, but must make an exception today. I want newcomers to understand the proper intent behind the hunt, no matter what methods we use."_

Obtena looked to the others. Bastila was staring into the cave. Canderous shrugged; he could not feel the power of the dark side of the Force radiating from inside, but he was also correct in thinking Bastila's thoughts were focused on the krayt dragon. "Alright, we'll help," Obtena told Komad. "What's your plan?"

_"We must bait the great beast outside and ambush him swiftly. There is no room to engage him in the lair, and his hide will repel blaster fire...well, most blaster fire..."_ Komad paused, taking a moment to eye Canderous' heavy weapon. _"I will place mines around the mouth of the cave. We must coax him out, but this is the end of his season of hibernation. It will take much to rouse him. The food of a beast this size is almost exclusively banthas... and foolish hunters. To lure him out, we must lure his food to tempt him."_

"Mines? Not very sporting," Canderous grumbled.

_"That is true, and I regret it. I tracked this beast for many days and hoped to face him fairly, but there are other concerns than my honour. It may seem like he is isolated, but the range of his territory extends deep into settled areas. We must kill him for the safety of others, and blasters alone will not do the job. We must lead the banthas here using fodder like the Sand People do. The mines will deal with the dragon as it emerges to feed. Not exactly a glorious hunt, but it wil ensure the safety of the region."_

"If it were that simple, you would have done it yourself." Obtena frowned at Canderous' argumentative behaviour, but his voice held no disrespect. She figured he was seeing this as a conversation between two honourable men. Komad nodded in response to his statement.

_"There is an added threat. The Sand People regard banthas as sacred. Attempting to feed the herd in this area will likely lead to an attack. We are far from the weakened tribes around Anchorhead. The Sand People of this region are strong, fierce, and will think nothing of killing you. Be careful. When you return, the dragon will fall. I wish it could be under more sporting circumstances, but we must do what the circumstances call for. I had hoped for a mirror of my father's expedition, but that will have to wait."_

Komad pointed out the direction in which the banthas were to be found, and the trio set off in that direction. As the hunter had warned, the local Sand People did not take kindly to their presence as they approached the bantha herd, but despite their ambush tactics, there were not enough of them to pose a serious threat. Unfortunately, searching their bodies brought up an unexpected problem.

Stowing his heavy repeater, Canderous picked up a gaffi stick and swung it back and forth experimentally in one hand. "So, what now? If these natives have any fodder, they've buried it in the sand, who knows where." He glanced over to the women as they observed the herd, and sighed. "I'm playing slave boy again, aren't I. Fine, give me some credits and I'll ride back to Anchorhead."

"That won't be necessary," Obtena told him, then shot him a look as he opened his mouth, prompting him to close it without voicing the obvious question. Instead he tossed the gaffi stick aside and crossed his arms with an annoyed grunt, watching as the pair spoke to each other in low voices.

"You ever try this before?" the padawan asked her companion.

"Only with solitary brith, back on Dantooine," Bastila answered. "The larger ones don't like to fly so close to the ground, but I've been able to attract the younger ones close enough to reach up and touch them. Perhaps we should've brought Juhani..."

"Kath hounds are canrivorous pack animals, not... well, perhaps pulling the same trick with a docile herd would have done her some good..."

"It's not a _trick_, Obtena."

"People call it a 'mind trick' when we do it to sentients, you know."

"I suggest we focus on the task at hand," the brunette in blue muttered with a hint of exasperation.

"Sorry," Obtena said sincerely. "Stretching feelings now."

Bastila blinked at how strongly the Force began to flow from the padawan with the simple turn of a phrase, before taking a deep breath and focusing her will to the same purpose.

Canderous watched as the Jedi fell silent, staring at the herd. His attention turned to the animals as a bantha let out a low call, stopped shuffling along with the rest and looked about itself. Then another did the same. And another... more... the Mandalorian's eyes widened as the whole herd came to a halt, swung around and started heading in their direction instead. He was familiar with how the Jedi used their powers in battle, but _this_ was a first.

Obtena looked back to him and spoke with a voice of contentment he had never heard from her before. "Lead us back, Canderous."

This time he knew not to ask, and turned back the way they had come.


	9. Chapter 8

"After due consideration, and very close observation of actual live banthas, I have come to the conclusion that I definitely do _not_ smell like one," Obtena huffed. She was being crowded by the lead banthas because, having made herself the one to follow, they were compelled to group up on her. The creatures maintained a reasonable distance from each other as they moved, but they were used to following something their own size. Perhaps it was the long fur hanging in their eyes, but their simple minds failed to grasp the difference in perspective and kept bumping into the human as they attempted to catch up.

"Perhaps you should try to tone it down," Bastila suggested in a clipped tone, keeping a couple of steps ahead of the padawan. She had no idea how one would 'tone it down' but it was better than stopping entirely and let the herd return to their original course.

"Maybe we should have let Canderous buy the fodder. It doesn't seem fair to trick innocent creatures when there's a good chance they're going to end up a dragon's dinner."

"Komad's plan is a good one."

"Yes, but now _we're_ involved, it's bound to go horribly wrong. Yesterday the Sand People, today everyone in roaming range of this krayt dragon, tomorrow the whole damned planet dies of old age." A moment of silence passed, and Obtena sighed. "I'm not doing a very good job of distracting you, am I. You really think it's the one that-"

"I feel it," Bastila said.

"...Then I suppose we'll find both the things we're looking for in that cave," Obtena decided. "Why do you think your mother wants it?"

"Father recorded all of his personal thoughts in that data holocron. Having it would be like having him with you." The brunette's sorrowful voice turned surprisingly resentful. "I don't see why she should have it, however. She drove him to his death! I loved him, and now I've lost any chance to say goodbye!"

Obtena tried to keep the surprise at Bastila's emotional display to the back of her mind. She expected this kind of behaviour from their hot-tempered Cathar companion, not the Jedi princess who thought the ultimate Jedi was an android with Force powers. "You'd keep it for yourself?" she asked.

"I don't know," the brunette answered. "Part of me wants it just so _she_ won't get it... I don't like that part of me. I would have thought my Jedi training would have put me past such pettiness. I wish..." She shook her head, and the next time she spoke there was no emotion. "I really don't want to think about this. Let's just keep going."

Obtena reigned in her own feelings too. If she couldn't lift Bastila's spirits, she wasn't about to drag them down. Perhaps for the first time since her training, she intentionally practiced the mental self-discipline that the Jedi prized so highly. She started by reciting the Jedi code, as she was sure Bastila was already doing. Then came the cold numbers of a game of Pazaak; card values, potential combinations, the probability of which four of the ten side deck cards could be drawn. When she was bordering on playing a match in her head, she tried to think of something else...

The night sky of Dantooine came to mind. Every star represented a single thought. Constellations drew related thoughts into patterns to form ideas. There were three constellations for the Jedi - the Sentinel, Guardian and Consular - surrounding and protecting a fourth, the winged spire of the Republic. Beyond them were the Sith, dark Jedi, and other threats such as the T-shaped constellation of the Mandalorians... that constellation had been bigger, but as Revan had regained ground against them, Bastila had simplified it into something smaller until it was barely...

Obtena blinked, full awareness returning to her surroundings. She was still trudging across the sand... had the banthas stopped nudging her, or had she merely stopped noticing? She'd fallen in step with Bastila - or the other way round - and the cave was now in sight. Bastila herself seemed to be coming to her senses at the same time, and glanced over her shoulder to return Obtena's look with a faint smile. "The effort is appreciated," was all she said.

_The bond's still growing,_ Obtena realised. _We must have linked when we both focused on... how far will this go? _Obtena didn't have time to ponder that question, the group reaching Komad as he was placing the last of his mines. _"Quickly, be ready,"_ he warned. _"The banthas are in position and will soon stir our restless prey. I hope the mines do their job quickly."_

Obtena nodded in agreement, altering her influence on the herd so that they'd hold still for at least a moment. "Let's spread out around the perimeter."

"I can still shoot it, though, right?" Canderous asked hopefully.

"Aim for its eyes or something," Obtena said. Bastila took position on the far side of Komad, Canderous' massive frame filled the remaining gap, and they stood in a wide semi-circle around the mouth of the cave as a rumbling began to sound from darkness within. The stomp of giant feet followed, and the sleepy behemoth emerged from its lair.

It was a dragon in every sense of the word, save for the lack of wings. The largest teeth jutting up below its snout were the length and breadth of Canderous' arms. Obtena could have curled up in its mouth with room to spare, if not for being swallowed whole. A massive horn swept back on either side of its crested head, and orange eyes blinked in the half-forgotten glare of the binary suns. It continued forward to reveal a back covered in bony spikes and a body armoured in black scales, save for the pale underbelly that barely escaped contact with the ground. Massive claws dug into the sand as the beast made its way toward the banthas... and walked right into the first line of mines.

Once Komad triggered the first series of explosions, Canderous opened fire. A rapid shower of blaster bolts danced across it's face, but the effect seemed only slightly more negligible than the explosions. Obtena wished the Mandalorian would bother to aim a charged shot instead of using the repeater's automatic fire, but she doubted the krayt had even noticed him yet. It had taken a moment for the detonations to register, but now it threw its head back and roared in defiance. Obtena was fairly sure it could see all of them, but it continued on toward the fleeing banthas even though the humanoids were closer. _Not big enough to eat,_ Obtena supposed.

The padawan glanced at Bastila, having expected to sense her reaction to the sight of the predator that had devoured her father. The mental wall she could throw up between them was still in place, but an expression of grim determination had settled on her face. Despite the current lack of mental contact, Obtena knew she was keeping her feelings in check for the sake of getting the job done.

The krayt dragon marched on, picking up speed in order to chase its retreating prey. Komad waited until it had advanced far enough, then blew the second wave of mines under its front legs, causing it to stumble before detonating the third. This time, there was nowhere for the force of the blasts to go except the path of least resistance. When the beast's head reared again, the torn, bloody flesh where its throat met its chest was obvious.

Bastila launched her lightsaber through the air, using the Force to send it spinning into the creature's wound while it was exposed. Canderous was firing again, but by now there was so much sand and smoke in the air that it was difficult to see. Obtena lobbed the last plasma grenade she had saved from their Tarisian adventures, willing it to go where she intended rather than guiding it by eye.

A final explosion flashed through the airborn detritus, and the great beast let out a final, ragged roar before it collapsed. The ground shook so fiercely with its fall that even Canderous was flung to his hands and knees.

In the ensuing silence, broken only by the noise of stampeding banthas, the smoke cleared to reveal the krayt dragon lying on its side, the majority of its neck vapourised, the top of its blackened chestbone visible to all... and the eye on Canderous' side had burned in its socket.

Obtena stumbled over to the Twi'lek hunter as he gazed forlornly at the dragon's corpse. _"It is done, and the great beast is dead,"_ Komad muttered._ "To my shame, I denied him a final fight, but I will honour his memory to make amends. I could use your aid for one more task, if you're willing, Human." _As the other two watched, the hunter directed Obtena to use her lightsaber to slice open the beast's belly. She backed off as he hitched up his sleeves and slid his forearms into the cut, exploring its innards with practiced ease.

A minute later, he approached them with a glistening black orb in each hand. _"You have earned a share of the victory, such as it is." _He offered Obtena one of the orbs.

"It had to be done," she said, accepting the prize Komad offered with what she hoped was a look of gratitude rather than nausea.

_"Regrettably so. I just hope you remember there were higher reasons for this. Don't let the spoils be your only reason to hunt. Wealth fades. The sands remain. I thank you all for your help here, today."_ With a final farewell he made his way back to his speeder, bagging the other orb as he went.

Obtena turned her attention to the one she held, tried to wipe away some of the wet slick that seemed to cover its surface, only to discover its surface was in fact completely dry. "Bastila? Is this a krayt dragon pearl?"

"Yes it is. Krayt dragons swallow stones to... to help digest what they eat. Komad was very generous to give us one. Not only are they extremely valuable, but they can be used in lightsabers."

"What, that shiny rock?" Canderous grumbled sceptically.

"At least a hundred thousand credits," Bastila informed him, though she was too distracted to fully appreciate his surprise.

"Anything that looks this wet while dry has to have some interesting properties," Obtena reasoned. "Soon as we get back to the ship, I'll want to try it out."

"Take care when you do," her companion warned. "The pearl will require significant preparation, and your patience has been lacking on more than one occasion."

"Sometimes, patience is worth the result," Obtena admitted, bagging the pearl. "Let's go."

The first thing they encountered upon entering the cave were humanoid remains. Apparently the krayt dragon had been a fussy eater. Some of the sentients it had killed had otherwise remained untouched, except by the passage of time; of others, only bones remained. The only notable exception were the Jedi robes, torn by a single strike but with no blood on the cloth. Obtena rooted around in it and found parts of a lightsaber. She managed to pry a crystal out of the weapon's bent housing before moving on.

"The Jedi master who came here must have become one with the Force when he was killed," Bastila whispered. "A fitting end when facing such a monster, cheating it out of a meal."

They moved deeper inside. As their eyes became accustomed to the dark, both Jedi recognised features from the vision they had shared. The shape of the device was barely visible in the darkest corner of the cave, but the darkness here did not feel entirely natural. As on Dantooine, it hummed to life as they approached. The three struts folded downward, the projector rose into the air, and the galactic holograph glowed to life. Both Jedi pulled out their datapads and compared the information they had with that being displayed before them, and added the new information.

They were now one step closer to finding the Star Forge.

"Anybody else get the feeling that finding the starmap in the back of this krayt dragon's cave is more than just a coincidence?" Canderous asked.

"The starmap is an artifact of the dark side," Bastila replied. "The krayt dragon must have been drawn here by its power, only to be ensl..."

Obtena sensed the spike of emotion in the brunette as she faltered. She watched as Bastila stepped around the starmap and knelt. There was the sound of leather, then the chink of metal on metal. When Bastila rose to her feet and turned, the others could see she held a pouchbelt clutched in one hand, and a small cube lying in the palm of the other. The holocron was emitting a faint yellow glow which seemed to brighten slightly as she held it up. Obtena could feel the wall in her companion's mind going up again just as her emotions threatened to spill over, and wished she'd just let go for the sake of getting it out and feeling better afterwards. On the other hand, this probably wasn't the time, especially with the Mandalorian looking on. Bastila wouldn't want to give him the satisfaction, or the opportunity for another scathing remark.

Canderous grunted, most likely because he figured if the Jedi princess hadn't burst into tears by now, she probably wasn't going to. "Now that we've got what we came for we should probably move on. Can't say I'm going to miss this pit of a world." Bastila nodded wordlessly and stowed both the belt and holocron in her pack, along with her datapad.

Their exit was interrupted by the sound of landspeeders.

The trio listened as the new arrivals powered down their vehicles on the far side of the massive corpse. A Rodian voice expressed its alarm at going after people who could take down a krayt dragon, and a voice they all recognised answered, "I never said the targets weren't worthy." The owner of the voice appeared atop the carcass as he spoke, his silhouette matching their last sight of him during the Sith bombardment of Taris. Buried under rubble, they had presumed him dead.

Chuckling to himself, Canderous swung his heavy repeater around to his back and drew his vibrosword before stepping back out into the sunlight. The Jedi flanked him on either side.

"I have to give you credit, you've led me on quite a chase," the leader of the newcomers admitted, "But nobody gets away from Calo Nord in the end."

"I see you brought some back-up, Calo," Canderous barked, indicating the mix of Rodian and Aqualish mercenaries that were making their way around the massive corpse. "Realised we were a bit much to handle on your own, huh?"

"You got lucky on Taris," the bounty hunter shot back. "The Sith attack saved you from a quick and gruesome death. But I promise you, the Sith won't be getting in my way this time!"

"Only because we already killed them ourselves," Obtena said. "You think we got lucky last time? Time to finish what we started!"

"Let's go, boys!" Calo yelled, thumbing the control on his forearm, "It's showtime!" His stocky form was enveloped by an energy field as his companions opened fire.

Canderous charged straight up the krayt dragon's spine to Calo, and was surprised to see him aiming his blaster pistols at Obtena instead. He wouldn't expect a fellow Mandalorian to be intimidated by another of his kind, no matter their respective sizes, but he was expecting a duel to the death this time. At least the girls were doing their part, deflecting shots with their lightsabers as they closed the distance to Calo's hired muscle and cutting them down. Voicing a battlecry, Canderous leapt upon Calo, swinging his vibroblade down in an overhead swing. Dodging the attack, the bounty hunter finally turned his attention to his former co-worker.

For a moment - Canderous always lost his perception of time when a good battle was before him - it was a game of avoiding swings of the blade and shots from the blasters. Canderous was losing, his bulk proving a disadvantage that his implant couldn't quite make up for, but the blade crashed down on Calo's armour a few times too, and he knew it wouldn't be long until...

Yellow and violet lightsabers crashed down on Calo Nord, but the shield took the brunt of the energy. It wouldn't be able to withstand the assault for long, though. Calo found himself surrounded. He knocked Canderous back with a shoulder before aiming a blaster at each Jedi, trying to keep them too busy deflecting shots to wear down the shield any further. Canderous feigned a stumble, then reversed his motion and slid his blade up into Calo's back.

The bounty hunter only let out a surprised gasp, then collapsed, sliding down the dead dragon's back to land facedown in the sand.


	10. Chapter 9

"To closure," Obtena announced smugly, raising her glass. Canderous, Carth, Mission and Zaalbar raised theirs in response before knocking back the last of the Tarisian ale in one gulp. Mission choked until the Wookiee gave her a pat on the back; it was her first - and probably last - taste of the stuff, so Obtena had decided to let her join them in the toast.

In the corner, Juhani whispered a question to Bastila as they watched Canderous root around for more alcohol. "Calo Nord, the bounty hunter? How was he involved?"

"He was working for Davik with Canderous, and was present at the confrontation when Obtena and the boys were trying to steal the Ebon Hawk." Juhani raised an eyebrow at Bastila's use of Obtena's term for the two men of their group, but did not interrupt. "When he realised he was losing, he threatened to blow everyone up with a thermal detonator. The Sith had just started bombing Taris... the last they saw of Nord, he was buried under falling debris." Bastila shuddered at the memory, the tremendous loss of life as the entire surface of the planet was pulverized by massive blasts of focused energy. She turned to Juhani and was startled by expression on the Cathar's face: resentment, bordering on anger, directed specifically at her. "Juhani?"

Juhani shook her head, her topknot waving back and forth angrily. "It is nothing important," she hissed quietly, then closed her feline eyes to center herself. When she turned her gaze back to Bastila, her face was calm once more, and she regarded the brunette coolly for a moment before speaking again. "Perhaps it would be best if a Jedi would not feel. But to deny that you feel, even as you feel it... I think such self-deception would be worse." She turned her unblinking gaze to Canderous. "The Mandalorians destroyed a homeworld I never knew. The Sith destroyed the only home I _did_ know, such as it was. Sometimes I feel such hatred for them both, despite my training and my... experience. I can feel it, but I keep it under control, and do not let it rule me. The struggle has its own importance."

The Cathar looked to Bastila once more. "Did you find what _you_ were looking for?" Bastila knew she didn't mean the starmap. She swallowed and silently nodded. "It is up to you to decide how best to mourn him. Do not deny the loss, but do not let it consume you." A glance in Obtena's direction. "You have help for the second part. All you have to do is accept it." With a grim smile and a nod, Juhani slinked off to the cargo hold to look for the little stowaway girl and keep her company. Bastila returned her attention to the others, though she could not help but wonder why Juhani had chosen to reveal her Tarisian past to her instead of Obtena, who seemed far more likely to provoke such revelations.

Canderous had apparently wasted some credits on the local Jawa beer, and was willing to share it. "Here, kid," he grumbled, shoving a mug under Mission's nose. "This should help soften the blow of the ale. Can't have the little blue girl turning green." Already used to Carth's jibes about her age, Mission merely kicked Canderous in the booted shin (which probably hurt her foot more than his leg) and took the mug with a smile. Bastila did not miss the grin on Obtena's face as she quietly observed the exchange. _By the time this mission is over_, Bastila thought, _she's going to get Juhani and Canderous romantically involved..._

Obtena burst into giggles, and Bastila realised their bond must have shared the idea with her. The padawan looked to her now and shook her head, and Bastila supposed that Obtena knew her social abilities had limits after all.

"What?" Canderous asked, failing to notice the mental exchange between the linked Jedi. "It wasn't that funny..." he paused, suddenly wondering if Republics - or Twi'leks for that matter - had some sort of custom involving offering girls drinks that he didn't know about.

"Nothing, private joke," Obtena assured him, and Bastila knew she was probably going to tease her about it later. "How about another war story?"

Canderous grunted, shuffling about in his seat to get comfortable. "I think I'll tell you a little bit about our war with the Rupublic. That might be more familiar to you. The one where Jedi Revan beat my people." The frown that had been in danger of easing its grip on Carth's face slammed back into place, but he said nothing as the Mandalorian began. "We started by conqouring worlds just outside the Republic..."

Bastila retreated to her bunk. Ever since she had learned of her father's death, she had spent even less time with the others in a social setting than the little she had dared to, before. Every spare waking moment, she now spent in meditation, making more sure than ever that she would remain centered and focused on the task at hand. She wished she was doing it to guard against Obtena'snear- constant emotional presence in her mind, rather than guarding against her own feelings. After Juhani's words, it concerned her that she would even think to deceive herself about it.

She had not appreciated Obtena informing the rest of the crew of her personal circumstances, though she did understand it. The crew of the Ebon Hawk was a family of cast-offs and loners, individuals set adrift in the galaxy... apparently guided by the Force to aid in her mission. Even the Mandalorian. She could not fathom why such a brute would have agreed to remain with them once they had escaped Taris. At first she thought he was merely infatuated with Revan, but that was - _Obtena, not Revan _- not the case. Respect, surely. The lewd jokes he shot off every now and then certainly indicated he was not above base lusts, but he did not seem to be actively pursuing Obtena in that fashion...

_As if I know in what fashion a man would pursue a woman, let alone a Mandalorian, _she admitted to herself. As usual, she refused to let herself dwell on it. Instead, she knelt upon the floor by her bunk, in her usual position, and cleared her mind. Her perception of her immediate surroundings began to lessen, and her consciousness began to drift...

"I HAVE NO TIME OR PATIENCE FOR COWARDS!" Canderous' voice boomed, and Bastila jumped at the sudden proximity and volume. Her eyes flew open to see the Mandalorian was not in the room with her as it seemed. The shock of it caused her to miss what was said next, then she realised that the combination of her bond with Obtena must have augmented the echo down the corridor. She immediately calmed herself again and reached across the connection...

Someone was stomping away... the footfalls were too light... it was Carth, heading to the cockpit, filled with a violent temper that matched the Mandalorian's battle mood. Obtena was letting him go, calming Canderous down so he would continue. She felt Bastila's attention, but did not respond to it. Bastila returned to her meditation, but kept an inner eye open.

As her thoughts began to drift again, she wondered if her battle meditation could be used in less violent situations. Inspiring allies and demoralizing enemies could be useful for negotiations as well as war... could prevent war, perhaps. Or it could backfire and cause a war. Bastila had trained as a sentinal. She was a champion of the light, not a diplomatic consular. Perhaps, when she returned to Dantooine, she could mention it to the masters...

Canderous cut short his story, before getting to the point where Revan, Malak and the Jedi that followed them joined the Republic military forces. Bastila was relieved, but she could feel something was going on. Obtena watched Canderous amble off before sliding out of her seat and... heading for the cockpit. What was she up to?

Carth was fiddling with the instrumentation again, occupying his mind. Was that an old habit, or something he picked up from his Jedi companions? Was it Bastila or Obtena who was wondering that? Bastila could not be certain. "Do you want to talk now?" Obtena asked, and Bastila could hear - no, feel - the same old friendly smirk on her lips.

With a burst of insight, Bastila realised what Obtena had done. Carth had barely spoken to any of them since the argument on the way to Tatooine. Obtena had timed Canderous' story in order to make Carth lose his temper, on purpose! She'd made him emotionally vulnerable! Bastila scowled, and made sure Obtena could feel it. Obtena stuck her tongue out at the back of Carth's head as he continued to face the other way, but Bastila knew who the gesture was meant for. _Well, why not,_ Bastila decided. _Carth is no Jedi, he has no need to guard against the dark side. _It was Obtena she was worried about. Interaction and manipulation were not the same thing... Carth was speaking, and Obtena was mentally 'nudging' her, so Bastila relaxed the connection.

This Force bond was proving to be as surprising as it was unexpected. Bastila had heard of telepathy before, of course, but she had always imagined it to be like a conversation going on between two minds. This was turning out to be far more... intimate. She grimaced internally at the use of the word, but it was the only one that would do the experience justice. What had started as just a flicker of life felt through the Force had blossomed into a sharing of experience. First it had merely been a presence, always in the back of her mind. It was Obtena's training at the Jedi enclave on Dantooine that strengthened the bond beyond that. The more accustomed she had become to using the Force, the more the bond had grown to include impressions of emotion, and now sensation.

It had advantages, of course. Out of everyone in their group, no one could fight in tandem better than they. Even taking part in Obtena's training could not explain how well they coordinated their actions. Between two properly-trained Jedi, such a bond would be a great asset. This bond, however...

Bastila was connected to an amnesiac Sith Lord. How could she ever hope to guide Obtena? The power of Revan was within her, even if she didn't know it. And yet, her actions and her behaviour were evidence that she was not falling back to the dark side as she had previously believed. What had happened to Revan during the Mandalorian War? What had happened to her afterwards? Why had she fallen? Would she fall again?

Once more, Bastila put her trust in the Force and the Jedi masters who had brought it to her. Believing it would all turn out for the best would not make it so, she knew, but it would probably help.

* * *

Carth sighed. Obtena wasn't going to give up. Perhaps he already knew it, but he didn't want to make it as easy for her as... _ah, hell_. "I, uh..." he trailed off again, then grumbled, "I'm not very good at this." He swung the pilot chair around to face Obtena, took a breath, then paused again as he rose to his feet; if he was going to do this, he should do it properly.

"I owe you an apology. Uh, more than one, probably." He ran a hand back through his hair, though the same two strands flopped back forward as usual. "I was just so desperate to face Saul directly in the battle over Taris, and now the Jedi have us looking for these starmaps. I know this mission is important. It's just... I feel a bit useless. I can fly, and I can fight, sure; but I'm no Jedi. All this feels completely out of my league! But... this may really, finally make a difference... and I suppose even if I can't figure out everything that's going on, I still want to help if I can."

Obtena shrugged. "If it's any consolation, I know how you feel. I didn't ask to be linked to Bastila, or become a Jedi; and yet here I am, trying to save the galaxy just like you wanted to on Taris."

With a wry chuckle, the pilot nodded. "I hate not knowing what's going on and feeling this... out of control, but I shouldn't have taken it out on you. I've been a royal pain in the backside, haven't I?"

"Completely, totally and utterly," Obtena nodded in mock seriousness, giving him her best imitation of his usual frown. He barked out an involuntary laugh at that.

"Well, I guess I should at least be a little pleased that I haven't lost my touch. So... I'm sorry. Will you accept my apology?"

"I don't know, maybe I should make you work for it a bit." she decided.

"Oh?" I don't know if I like the sound of that..."

"Do you want me to accept your apologyor not?" the padawan pouted.

"I don't know. What am I going to have to do for it?"

"Blow away the bad guys, save the damsels in distress. The usual."

"Oh, the usual. Let's get to it then, shall we?" Carth collapsed back into his seat, relieved. "When are we getting underway?"

"Tonight. There's something Bastila and I have to do first."

* * *

Obtena paused as they approached the cantina, and Bastila turned to face her with an enquiring look. "Have you decided what you're going to do?" she asked carefully. Bastila's eyes fell, the answer reverberating between them as it did between the old feelings and her Jedi training. Or is it simply because of who she is? Obtena wondered. There's more to her than her training... despite her own efforts.

"Do you think I should give it to her?" Bastila asked, interrupting her line of thought.

"Do you need it more than she does?" Obtena shot back.

"I would like to keep something to remember father as much as she would," the conflicted Jedi admitted. "I should... try and remember my training. I should be able to let go of this, but I can't."

"I think you'd still be having a tough time with it even if you weren't a Jedi, Bastila. There's a difference between the Jedi you're trying to be, and the person you are. Frankly, I like the person better."

"Of that I am very much aware, I assure you."

"Perhaps you should consider trying to mend things before she-"

"That would only lead to another argument. I always despised talking to her..." Bastila shook herself. "This is pointless. Let's just get this over with."

Obtena followed her inside and blinked rapidly a few times. "Can you see her?"

"She's here," Bastila replied, in a tone of voice that would have made Obtena think 'uh-oh' if she hadn't already felt Bastila's tension gradually increasing, the closer it got to this moment. Obtena doubted her companion's eyes adjusted any quicker. _She must feel her. I wonder if I would have been able to feel my parents..._

Bastila's spite rose to match her mother's bile as the pair conversed. Obtena considered using the bond to calm the former, but decided against it as it would leave the latter unaffected. "Do you really _need_ the holocron, Bastila?" she asked instead.

"I... perhaps not," Bastila admitted. "I can remember father well enough, despite the comparatively little time I had with him. But why should she have it?"

"Is it too difficult to believe that I am a dying woman who simply wishes to see her husband one last time?" Helena argued.

"I find it difficult to believe anything you say, mother."

"If the _only_ reason you want to keep the holocron is so your mother doesn't get it..." Obtena raised an eyebrow.

For a moment, the struggle between vindictive and compassionate urges was evident on Bastila's face... and then with a long breath, she released her anger. "You're right. It shames me, but I just... I find it difficult to... let go of the past." She turned to Helena. "I'm... sorry, mother."

Helena's expression softened in return when she realised her daughter was sincere. "I was hard on you, dear. I wasn't a very good mother to you, I know that. Your father loved you so. He wanted you to be just like him... he wanted to take you on his hunts, but I said they were too dangerous. I always tried to keep him from the dangerous ones, but he would have none of it. It was a reckless life we led, always moving... I didn't want that for you."

Bastila blinked in surprise; she had remembered nothing of this, but now the topic of some of the fights she remembered between her parents became clearer. "So that's why you gave me to the Order?"

"What do your father and I have to show for all those years of hunting?" Helena asked, tugging at her threadbare clothes. "Nothing. That was no life for anyone, especially not someone as gifted as you. Your father... he spent these last years trying to pay for my treatments. That's why he went for the pearls! I begged him not to, but..."

"Your treatments?"

"I'm dying, Bastila. I did not lie about that. It's been a long time in the coming, and there's really nothing that can be done anymore. I told your father to let me go, but you know how he was. Stubborn, just like you."

"I'm so sorry, mother. I don't know what to say..." Bastila stepped forward, and took Helena's hands in her own. Helena smiled feebly.

"Keep the holocron, Bastila. It would do me good to know you have it. This..." she paused, squeezing her daughter's hands. "Talking with you... I think this is what I really needed, before I..."

"I know, mother. Thank you." Bastila actually gave in to an impulse and hugged her. "I'm glad we talked, too."

Helena returned the hug awkwardly, then gave a nervous little laugh. "Well, now. You said you had important business, and you were never one to mince words. You there..." she addressed Obtena, who had taken the opportunity to order a drink from the bar. "Take care of my daughter, you hear me?"

"As if she'd let me," Obtena complained jokingly, with a wink at the daughter in question.

"Make her let you. Too much of her father..." Helena paused a moment as she caught on. "Well. Good. I'll feel a lot better knowing there's someone watching her."

"What are you going to do now?" Bastila asked her mother.

"It doesn't matter, dear. Don't you worry about me..."

"Here, take these five hundred credits," Bastila said, fishing the credit chip out of the pouch on her belt. "It's all I have. Go to Coruscant and find a doctor. I'll find you there after... after what I have to do."

"But I already told you there's nothing that can-"

"Please, take it. I... want to see you again, when we can talk."

Helena gave in and took the chip Bastila offered. "Alright, I will. Now you do what you have to do, Bastila. You go make your father and I proud."

"I'll try. Farewell, mother."

With a final smile for both of them, Helena walked out of the cantina. Bastila leaned against the bar beside Obtena, who promptly offered her a sip of her drink. "More for me," she muttered happily when Bastila shook her head with a bemused smile. The brunette watched as her companion drained the rest of the glass in one go, acting as if nothing interesting had just happened.

"Thank you."

"Hm?" Obtena hummed into her glass before setting it down. "For what?"

"You know perfectly well."

"Rescuing you from the worst swoop gang on Taris?" Obtena asked. "Letting you have your less-revealing clothes back so you could change out of that joygirl outfit? Against my better judgement, I might add. Getting you off Taris before the Sith got you?" She made as if she were to count further points off on her fingers, but Bastila interrupted by taking Obtena's hand in hers.

"That brought me a lot of peace... more than I thought it would have. Thank you for urging me toward it. After all my training I should have been able to handle that better. Apparently I still have much to learn."

"All that Jedi training doesn't leave much room for learning how to be a person, does it?"

"I wouldn't say that..."

"How many friends did you have on Dantooine?"

"Quite a few, when we were all younglings. Relationships changed as we got older. Some drifted away as the training became familiar and took priority over social concerns. And of course, things change as one discovers how strong they are in the Force. Once my battle meditation developed, I began special training to master it, which took up what little time I had left."

Obtena motioned to the door, and together they stepped outside and headed back to the hanger. "There is one thing I regret missing about my late training. I never got to see how the Jedi masters handle their students going through puberty. I bet you were a sexy little handful in your teens."

"I was no such thing!" Bastila denied, though her cheeks did flush. Or was that the outdoor heat? "It's true that indulging such instincts and passions is... contrary to the Jedi code, but our training included subjects such as sexuality, so we would be able to... handle the biological... developments."

Obtena smirked. "And that was the only kind of 'training' you did, was it?" she asked, and giggled as Bastila's cheeks reddened further. "Tell me all about it. I want details. When, where, who, how..."

"It wasn't like that," Bastila admitted falteringly. She fell silent as she considered it, then sighed in resignation. "It was a holovid."

"An erotic holovid? How juicy was it?"

"Too... um, juicy. It wasn't erotic, it was pornographic. There are plenty of colonists on Dantooine, so it wasn't hard for a student to get their hands on something every now and then..."

"I can't imagine _you_ doing that. I'm guessing one of the other students got it and you watched it as a group."

"Yes... and it was very... graphic."

"Hm. I imagine something like that could be a bad first impression," Obtena supposed.

"Perhaps. However, we had the wisdom to realise that the... standards presented did not reflect those of, well..."

"Real life. So you know not to worry about your center of gravity not being in your cleavage. Even if that peach number does its best to make it appear that way."

The brunette sighed. "I'm never going to hear the end of that, am I."

"Mmmno. It shows off too many sexy curves as it is. Putting a Jedi ice queen in it only makes it more noticable, especially when she's gorgeous enough to make it work."

"I am not..." Bastila cut herself short, then frowned at the unexpected compliment.

"Gorgeous?"

"An ice queen."

"And when you saw how well endowed the males in that holovid were, you swore that even if you weren't a Jedi in training, you'd never let a man near you, ever."

"Speaking for yourself, are you?"

"Heh. Do you find Carth attractive?"

Bastila stopped short at that question, completely surprised. Obtena paused as well, waiting for her answer. "I... am aware of it. And when I first took command of the Endar Spire, there was mention of his reputation. Though I doubt now that it was well-deserved."

Obtena took Bastila's arm in hers and led her on. "Don't be so sure. Before we found you on Taris, he turned on the charm once or thrice. Out of habit, I think. And you've probably noticed the way he's looked at me every now and then, when we're on good terms that is. I think he slept around because it helped with whatever's really hurting him. There's more to it than a treacherous mentor." The pair entered the docking bay, and Obtena signalled to Carth in the cockpit. The Ebon Hawk's engines hummed to life as they approached the loading ramp. "Or maybe being on a ship where all the women are celibate Jedi is driving him nuts. Heh, maybe I should let him have his way with me after all."

"Given your attitude toward the Jedi, I must admit I was surprised you did not respond to his attentions as he would like."

"If I wasn't already distracted, I'd consider it," Obtena said quietly. "If we became lovers, it would just be for fun, and that's not what I'm interested in. Anymore. I think." Obtena recalled vague memories of past relationships without any real feeling. Meanwhile, Bastila gently withdrew her arm before they boarded the ship and came within eyeshot of Canderous. Apparently the link between them made her reasoning clear without Obtena consciously noticing it, as she squinted suspiciously at the grinning Mandalorian. "And what are you up to? Mission teaching you to whistle through the gap in your teeth?"

Mission laughed at the idea, but held up what Canderous had been working on at the bench. "Calo Nord's armour," she explained. "Big C's finally found something he looks good in, though its taking longer to modify it. That guy was really short for a Mandalorian."

"Big C?" Bastila repeated quietly, the corner of her mouth tugging upward. Canderous gifted her with a malevolent glare before turning to Obtena.

"I should be ready to take on anything when we reach our next destination," Canderous announced. "It may not be Mandalorian battle armour, but anything good enough for Calo is good enough for me."

"Setting aside the fact that it already turned out not to be good enough for him." Obtena remarked with a raised eyebrow.

"You know what I mean," Canderous grumbled before returning his attention to the armour. Obtena gave a satisfactory chuckle; every opportunity to make the big brute think about something other than battle was a cause for celebration. She wondered how long the logic of his last statement would bother him before he was finally able to either reason it out or ignore it.

Dragging Bastila along with her again, Obtena whispered into the brunette's ear. "Canderous looks pretty good for his age, hm? Think you could handle such a big strong man grunting and grinding away on top of you?"

"Don't even joke about that," was Bastila's appalled response.


End file.
